You Look So Much Like Her
by Angel1876
Summary: Alfred finds a young girl in his garden one day. She looks like Alexia, and he decides to care for her. He's never looked after a child before, though, but with his sister's help he'd sure he can manage. Rated T just to be safe.
1. Elena

"It's a wonderful day today, don't you think, Alexia?" Alfred cooed at his sister as he smiled at her.

"Yes, it is simply beautiful, brother. Why don't we go outside and take a walk through the garden?" she answered sweetly. She smiled back and reached up her fingertips and touched his as he held his hand out to her.

"I'll meet you there, just give me a few moments to get ready. I'm so happy you're here." he kissed her lightly on the forehead and hurried to his room, oblivious to the smear of lipstick he'd left on the bathroom mirror. He put on his best outfit, a bright red uniform his sister so dearly loved to see him wear. He didn't question the abandoned wig on his bed, the purple dress on the floor, or even the rag covered in make up on his dresser.

He beat her to the garden, so he decided to walk among the flowers as he waited. He sighed and sat at one of the wooden benches, really, she was taking a long time...

A noise in a nearby bush drew his attention. "Who's there?" he called as he stood up. "I'm warning you. I'm armed." and he was, he had a handgun in his pocket. He heard a soft yelp, and the bush grew still. "I know you're there. I demand you come out now." he waited for a few moments, but he got no response. He pulled out the gun and stalked toward the plant. Before he even got near it, he saw a small figure appeared from between the leaves and bolted away. A child? A girl, from the brief glimpse he'd gotten. What would a girl be doing there?

"Wait!" he called as he gave chase, and she led him through the various plants in her effort to escape. Eventually, he managed to corner her in the far end of the greenhouse. Panting, he leaned against on of the wooden stands. "I...you...you're fast..." he finally got a good look at her, and he swore his heart skipped a beat. Everything froze for a moment as he stared at her. "Alexia...?" he whispered. No, this was just a little girl, she couldn't be older then five or six. But, she looked exactly like Alexia had at that age, same hair, same eyes, everything.

He finally regained his breath, and went to step closer. She whimpered and cowered where she sat, her eyes wide with terror. He realized he was still holding his gun, and he quickly put it away. He held his hands up to show her he no longer had the weapon, "Here, see? No need to worry, I'm unarmed now." he smiled as kindly as he could and tried to come closer, but she yelped and pressed herself harder into the wall. The look she was giving him hurt, especially since she looked so much like his sister. What was he supposed to do? Alexia had always been better at these things than he was.

Slowly, he kneeled where he stood, his gaze locked on hers. "It's okay," he said gently, "Don't worry, I'm nice. I don't normally threaten children with firearms, it was an accident." He held his hand out to her. She stared at it as if it might bite her if she drew near. "Come on." he pressed, but she didn't move. He sighed quietly and withdrew his arm. Should he get his sister? She'd know what to do, he was sure of it. But then again, if he left, she'd run off again, and he didn't know if they could find her again. What would she do in this situation?

"I'm Alfred." he said, his voice still quiet as he tried not to alarm her further, "What's your name?"

"Elena..." she answered timidly, her voice cracking with fear.

"Elena? I like that name." he smiled again, and scooted a little closer, stopping when she flinched.

"What do you think of the garden, Elena?"

"I..."

"Don't you like it? We've worked hard on it. Some of these plants were here before we were born. Isn't that something?" he inched his way toward her. "Do you have a favorite flower?"

"Blue ones..."

"There are lots of pretty blue flowers here." he said. He was close enough to reach out and grab her foot if he'd wanted. "I can show you sometime, if you want. Do you have a brother, Elena? Or a sister?"

"No..."

"An only child? You must get lonely." he lightly touched her blond hair, "I won't hurt you, you know. Will you come with me?" he caressed her cheek, hoping the gentle touch would convince her to trust him. She whimpered, but didn't pull away. Carefully, he picked her up. She shivered in his arms, but didn't make any effort to escape. He carried her into the mansion, and took her up to his room. Again, he paid no mind to the dress or the wig.

"Are you hungry?" he asked as he sat her on the bed. She nodded shyly. "What's your favorite food?"

"Peanut butter...and jelly..."

"I think that's manageable. Will you stay here while I get it?" she nodded, he smiled and left for the kitchen. He felt a small thrill of happiness. He'd calmed her without help. Alexia would be so proud of him! He couldn't wait to tell her.

Where was she, anyway?

* * *

><p><strong>AN: So, how was it? Good? Bad? Did I get Alfred's character down alight? Should I keep going? *smiles* Constructive criticism and sugestions as to what happens next are more than welcome.<strong>


	2. A Promise

Alfred walked back to his room with a plate that held three peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. He wasn't sure if she could eat all of it, but he wanted to be sure she had enough. He still hadn't seen Alexia. Had she gone off to the garden after he left? That's it, they'd probably just missed each other. Oh, well, he'd just have to catch up with her later.

He found the little girl right where he'd left her when he opened the door. "Hello, Elena." he greeted softly so he wouldn't startle her. Even so, she yelped and jerked her head toward him. "It's just me." he assured her with a smile and placed the plate in front of her. "Here, like you wanted." he said as he sat next to her.

"Tank you..." she whispered quietly before she reached out and cautiously picked one up. She bit into it and chewed quietly while he watched, curious.

"Is it good?" he asked, hoping she liked it. His sister had taught him how to make them when they were little.

"Uh-huh." she answered and took another bite. She made it half way through the second one before she was too full to continue. He put the plate on the nearby dresser, planning on putting it away later on. He turned back to her to find she'd curled up on the bed, and he could see tears starting to form in her eyes.

"Elena?" he said and sat back down next to her, "Elena, what's wrong?"

"I wanna go home." she sniffled.

He gently lay a hand on her shoulder, "...What happened before I found you?" he said this slowly, unsure wether he should ask or not.

"There was a bad thing in the house...and mama told me to run. I, I wanted her to, to come with me, but the hole was too little..."

Alfred felt an odd pang where his heart was. The poor girl! He didn't quite understand what must have happened, but from her description it sounded pretty frightening. No wonder she'd been so terrified when he found her. She sobbed, and the sound sent a wave of emotion through him. "D-don't cry." he said, not knowing what to do to comfort her. Again, he wished Alexia was there to help him. "I can get you some candy? A puppy? Kitty? Um, I have an entire amusement park in the attic..." none of these suggestions seemed to help. Unable to think of anything else, he pulled the girl into his arms and gently stroked her hair, something his sister used to do to him whenever he'd been upset. "Please don't cry ." she whimpered again and buried her face into his shirt, "Elena..." he moved his hand to rub soft circles into her back. He could feel his own eyes start to water as she clung to him. "It's okay. Really. I'll... I'll take care of you. I promise" he heard his voice crack a little as he spoke.

He didn't know exactly how long he held her, but suddenly he realized she wasn't crying anymore. In fact, she was asleep. As carefully as possible, he lay her down on the bed and covered her with the blanket. Quiet as a mouse, he gathered the dress and wig and snuck out of the room.

He tossed the dress down the laundry shoot, and took the wig to the bathroom. He caught sight of himself in the mirror and froze, staring at his reflection as a deer would stare at a pair of headlights. Something in his mind shifted, and without realizing it, he wasn't himself anymore.

"Alfred." she said sternly to her brother, "Where were you? I searched for you for over an hour."

"I'm sorry, Alexia." he smiled sheepishly, "I waited for you, but then I found a little girl."

She turned from him and put the wig on the stand, "A girl? What was she doing here?"

"I don't know. She said there was something in her house, and her mother told her to run."

"A zombie?"

"I don't know. I don't think she actually saw it. Alexia, you should see her, she looks like you."

She faced her brother again and folded her arms, "Does she now?"

He nodded, "Yes. Her name's Elena. I think you'd like her. She was scared, but I made her better! She's asleep now."

She finally smiled at him, "Sounds like you've been busy. I'm proud of you, doing all that by yourself."

He grinned, "You should meet her tomorrow, maybe you could play one of our games with her for a while? She might like that."

"Very well. For now, you should watch over her while she sleeps. Wouldn't want her to have a nightmare and go running all over the mansion, would we?"

"Okay. Goodnight, Alexia, sleep well. I love you."

She left the room, and as soon as the mirror wasn't in sight, her mind shifted again.

Alfred went back to the bedroom and found Elena curled up tightly, cucooned in the blanket. Carefully, he slid under the covers and lightly put an arm around her. He closed his eyes and fell asleep quickly. 


	3. Bucket

"Mister?" Alfred stirred a little in his sleep. "Mister?" he whined softly. It wasn't time to get up yet, surely only a couple of hours had passed...? "Mister! Wake up!" the squirming bundle in his arms demanded his attention, and the man slowly opened his eyes to find a little girl staring at him. He could see the urgency on her face, even through the dim light the half moon sent through the window.

"Ale...Elena?" he muttered groggily, "W, what's wrong?"

"I gotta go pee..." she said in a strained voice, wiggling around, "_I gotta go pee_." she repeated, as if to stress the seriousness of the matter to him.

"Oh! Oh, sorry." he realized he'd trapped her in his arms and quickly pulled away. "I'll take you to the bathroom."

He led her down the hall and she practically flew to through the door he opened it for her. He stretched and leaned against the wall, a quiet yawn escaping him as he patently waited for her to come back out. He heard the flush, and she opened the door and peaked out at him.

"Mister? I can't get the twisty thing." she looked frustrated.

"The..._twisty_ thing?" he repeated, having no idea what she meant. This seemed to annoy her.

"The...the twisty! I can't get it, it's too far away." she pointed to the sink as she complained. He stared at it a moment, his still half asleep brain straining, before he realized she was talking about the knob to turn the water on. He ran it for her, picked her up so she could wash her hands, and lightly put her back down.

"There, all better?" he said, "Come on, let's go back to bed." he started back in that direction, but paused when he noticed she didn't follow. "Elena?"

"I dun wanna go to bed." a soft whine entered her voice.

"But, but...sleep!" he exclaimed, shocked at her refusal, "It's night time! We need to sleep, with the bed and the dreaming, and, and... Aren't you tired?" she shook her head, and he frowned. The very idea of being up at that hour was simply ridiculous to him.

"I'm bored! Will you play with me?" she asked hopefully.

"But..." Alfred was never one to turn down a game, but it was two in the morning! He hadn't been up that late in years!

"Peeze, mister?"

"...okay." he said quietly, pouting.

"Yay!" she lunged at him and wrapped her arms around his waist, giggling. "Tank you!"

"Yeah, your welcome." he said, still pouting even as he returned the hug. "But call me Alfred, will you?"

"Tay, Al-fed." she pulled away to smile up at him.

"Close enough..." he said. "Now, what game do you want to play? I have checkers, chess, shoots and ladders, parcheesi, monopoly, space monopoly, fantasy monopoly, life, hungry hippos, where's Waldo, uno, battleship, clue..."

_**Ten minutes later...**_

"Zombies!, tic-tack-toe, jenja, mouse trap, operation, operation: zombie edition and go fish."

"Wow..." she stared at him, wide-eyed, "I tink you broke my head..."

He laughed quietly at this, realizing he'd probably overwhelmed her with all of that. "I could just take you up to my attic."

"Why?" she asked curiously.

"Didn't I already tell you?" he grinned, "Come on, you'll see."

* * *

><p>Alfred, despite how tired he felt, was thrilled to see the look on her face when he turned the lights on. "See? I told you I have an entire amusement park in my attic."<p>

"It's a horsey-go-round!" she squealed, "Al-fed! It's a horsey-go-round!"

"Want to ride it?" he asked. The merry-go-round was his favorite, Alexia's too.

"Yes!" she said as she jumped up and down excitedly. He liked this change in attitude, it was much better than the fear he'd seen before. The thought that he was the one who'd caused it made the exhaustion worthwhile.

"Come on, then." he picked her up and set her on one of the wooden animals, pressed a button on the control panel nearby, then hurried to sit behind her on the horse. She giggled as the ride began to spin them around in a slow, wide circle. He held on to her so she wouldn't fall off as the horse began to bob up and down, and laughed even harder.

After about five minutes, the ride slowed to a stop, "Again!" Elena begged, "Again, Al-fed!"

So, he rode it with her again. And again, and again, and again. After about a half hour of constant spinning, he pulled himself off of the ride, stumbling as he walked, "So...dizzy..." he collapsed to the ground, the world twisting around him.

"Al-fed?" she asked as she drew near, seemingly unaffected, and reached out to poke him lightly.

"Please...no more...spinning...ughh..."

"Al-fed?" she repeated, "Wake up! You can't seep here." she poked him again.

"Nhhh..." he sat up slowly, and a small moan came out as his stomach twisted, "I've never...gone around...in circles...that long...before." he put a hand to his mouth, trying to keep the previous night's dinner down.

"Yay! You're up!" she wrapped her arms around his neck, giving yet another giggle, "Al-fed, I'm hungry again. Can I have more peanut butter and jelly, peeze...?"

He gagged, the very mention of food nauseating. "Yeah," he murmured, "Just...let me get...a bucket first..."

"Why?" she asked innocently.

"You don't want to know." he stood and stumbled toward the hatch that led back to the room below, his hand still pressed tightly to his mouth.


	4. Rawr!

Alfred leaned against the table in the kitchen and watched her eat the sandwich he'd made her. The world had finally stopped it's horrible twisting, but he still felt slightly dizzy. He was just happy he'd managed to keep from throwing up, or falling down the ladder as they climbed back down.

He smiled tiredly at her and sat in the chair opposite her, "Are we ready for bed yet?"

"No." she replied brightly as she took another bite.

"Not even a little?" he pressed hopefully, "Come on, admit it. You're just a_ little_ sleepy?"

"No!" she giggled, "You're funny, Al-fed."

He sighed quietly. "Glad you think so." he lay his head against the table with his eyes closed. Sleep... he needed it...so badly...

"Al-fed?" he looked up to find she'd finished her food, "Can we play more? Peeze?"

He flinched. She was looking at her with those big sad eyes again, like if he said no it would break her fragile little heart. "I...okay. But not the merry-go-round. Anything but that..."

"Tay..." she stood and slowly walked toward him, an odd little look in her eyes.

"Elena, what are you doing?" he asked as she drew closer. He got up and backed away slowly, "Elena?" he repeated nervously, not liking the mischievous smirk she was giving him.

"Rawr!" she yelled out suddenly and lunged for him. Yelping with suprise, he jumped away from her, but she kept coming!

"Elena, what are you doing?" he asked as he evaded another attack, his exhaustion and lingering dizziness making his reaction time slower.

"I'ma dino-sar!" she exclaimed proudly, "And you're a mousey!"

"I'm...a mouse?" he pressed himself into the wall, watching her movements carefully.

"Yes!" she jumped at him, and he side stepped out of the way.

"Well, you're going to want to be faster than that if you wanna catch me." he informed her, smiling a little as he inched toward the door.

"Rawr!" she ran after him as he fled down the hall and up the stairs. He was carful not to go too fast, as to not lose her in the large mansion.

* * *

><p>Alfred panted quietly as he hid in Alexia's room, the thick drapes that surrounded the bed shielding him from the little girl's gaze as she searched for him. She wandered around the room, apparently not considering the purple covering a likely hiding place.<p>

"Grrr...come out mousey, wer-eva you are..." he watched her from the tiny crack, and noticed she didn't seem as alert as she had been. A small noise came from her, and his heart leapt hopefully. Had she just yawned? Yes! She did yawn! He saw it!

"Elena?" he called quietly, peaking out from the draped.

"Mousey!" she said and immediately jumped at him. This time, he reached out and caught her instead of evading. Grinning at her, he pulled her into his lap.

"Good dino, you got me." he cooed softly, ruffling her hair a little.

"Yay..." she giggled and hugged him, all the energy kind of draining out of her. She nuzzled her face into his shoulder and went still.

Really? He could sleep? Finally?

He gently lay her in the bed and covered her with the silk blankets before curling up next to her. He closed his eyes and waited for soft and fuzzy dreams...

But, wait. This was his sister's room. Shouldn't she be there? He left the bed and searched the room, and she was no where to be found. No, this wasn't right. Alexia slept in her room every night, and he in his own. So, where was she?

A slight pain flared through his brain, and he moaned as he put a hand to his head. There was something...something he was forgetting. Something important, something that was vital he remembered. But what? What was it?

As the pain increased, he went to the closet and pulled out one of her dresses, and ran to the bathroom quickly as he could.

* * *

><p>As soon as he saw her in the mirror, the pain faded, and all was well again. "Alexia, what are you doing up at this hour?" he asked curiously.<p>

"I went to use the toilet, and when I came back, I found a little girl in my bed. I thought you might want to know." she replied calmly with a smile, "Why don't you go back to bed, brother? You look tired. I can watch her for a while."

"I_ love_ you!" he said, gratitude filling him at the offer. "Please? Oh, _thank you_..."

"You're welcome, Alfred." with that, his mind made the shift, and Alexia walked out of the room.

She lightly put a hand to her mouth to cover a small yawn. She didn't know why she was so tired, but she didn't dwell on it.

She lay on the bed next to the girl. Unlike Alfred, she kept about a foot of space between them she drifted to sleep.

* * *

><p>"Al-fed!" the child called as she poked her arm, "Al-fed! You turned into a girl!"<p>

Alexia sat up and brushed the hair from her face, "I am not Alfred." she stated. "I am Alexia Ashford. And you must be Elena? My, he was right, you do look like me..."

"Alex...ah...?" she scooted away, a shy expression on her face, "Where Al-fed?"

"He is sleeping. Seems you two had fun last night." she smiled kindly at her. "Come, we have much to do."

The older woman walked away, with the little girl following uncertainly behind.


	5. Memories and Dragonflys

"There now, all done." Alexia said as she finished brushing Elena's hair. She'd given her a bath, and put one of her old outfits on her(a purple dress, matching shoes and a pair of white gloves, much like what she herself currently wore).

She squirmed uncomfortablly, "It feels weird, Al-ex-ah."

"Haven't you worn a dress before?" she asked curiously.

"No..." the child shifted her weight, not looking up at the woman.

"Elena," Alexia started as she sat on the bed and pulled her up onto her lap. "Whatever is the matter? Do you not like me?"

She still wouldn't look at her, "I miss Al-fed."

"Alfred will be back." she stated, "He can't stay away forever. And we can have fun until he gets back, can't we?"

"I dunno." she answered mournfully. Alexia frowned.

"If you don't cheer up, I shall be forced to take drastic action." she waited a moment, and when she didn't get a response, she stood and sat the girl on the bed, "I warned you..." she kneeled in front of her, and very lightly put her hands at the girl's sides, against her ribs. She smirked and gently dug the tips of her fingers into the spaces between the bones.

Elena squeaked and went to scoot away, but Alexia's probing hands were relentless. They held her down and wiggled into her sides, causing her to yelp and giggle. "Do you feel better now?"

"Yes!" Elena gasped out, squirming madly.

"No, you say? Pity..." she continued effortlessly tickling the girl.

"Yes! I, bed-bedder!" she squeaked loudly, "Al-ex-ah!"

"Hmm?" Alexia pulled away and smiled innocently at her, "Elena, your hair is a mess. I'll need to brush it again..."

"Why?" she whined, "You mess-ed it up."

"True, but the fact remains." she grabbed the brush and, within moments, the blond hair was once again free of knots, "There now, don't you look nice?" she got no answer from the girl, who was pouting again, "Oh dear, are you sad again? I shall have to remedy this." she slowly reached for Elena's ribs...

She squealed and darted away to stand at the opposite side of the room, "I o-k, Al-ex-ah." she said brightly, smiling as wide as she possibly could.

The woman chuckled, "Very well. Would you like to go into the garden with me? Alfred informed me you might like blue flowers?"

* * *

><p>Alexia sat down on a bench and watched the little girl run around to gaze at the different plants the greenhouse held. "Stay where I can see you!" she called after her, smiling in spite of herself. Elena could be so adorable when she was excited, just like her brother.<p>

Her brother...

Something moved off to the right, and she glanced over to see a dragonfly as it landed next to her on the bench. She watched as it crawled over the smooth wood, closer and closer to her, unknowing of the danger...

She reached out and grabbed the insect, holding it tightly as to prevent escape, but not so much that she hurt it. It wriggled desperately in her grasp, and it's wings beat in vain against her fingers.

Alfred sighed and lightly ran a finger over the creature's head, petting it like one would pet a dog or a cat. He remembered...it was the worse day of his life, the last time he held one of these things...

**_Flashback._**

_The young man sobbed quietly in the empty playroom, once more alone. But what else was new? Alexia was busy, with her stupid virus. She was_ _always_ _busy, ever since they'd discovered the secret Alexander had kept from them, ever since they'd infected him with T-Veronica. She'd become obsessed with the virus, barley taking the time to eat or sleep for weeks on end. Sometimes, he wished he'd never found that room...at least he'd be getting some time with her. At least...she wouldn't be leaving..._

_A fresh wave of sobs overcame him, and he buried his face in his arms. She'd told him only hours before of her plan. She would inject herself with T-_  
><em>Veronica, the same thing that had mutated their father into the monstrosity they'd called Nosferatu. Then, to give herself and the virus time to mature, she'd go into a tank to sleep for fifteen years. <span>Fifteen years.<span> Alone. Without his sister. Without Alexia..._

_How would he survive? He needed her. She was the only one who'd ever cared, the only one that didn't treat him as if he were some animal. Though, he wouldn't have blamed her if she'd had. He'd read their father's journal, he knew...he wasn't as smart as her. He wasn't as capable as she was. He wasn't even supposed to exist. He was an accident, a mistake. Only one child was meant to come from Alexander's little experiment, not two. Alexia, not Alfred._

_Sniffling, he wiped the wetness from his face. He felt ashamed for crying like that. Really, what if someone came in and saw it? What if Alexia saw it? It would give her yet another reason to hate him. Not that she didn't already, considering she was going to leave him._

_A dragonfly flew into the open window and landed near where he sat. He watched it for a moment as it lazily sat there, not bothered as his gaze hardened into a glare._

_He grabbed it easily, and it struggled in his grasp. But it was too late, he wasn't going to let it go. Somehow, someway, it was this creature's fault for what was happening to him. He griped one out of the four wings in his fingers and slowly pulled it off._

_He heard the door open, and glanced up to see his sister standing there. Wordlessly, he turned his attention back to the insect. He felt her sit next to him as he ripped off the second wing._

_"You've been crying." she stated as she lay a hand on his shoulder. "Brother..."_

_"What if you mutate?" he whispered, "What if you become a monster like Nosferatu?"_

_"Alfred," her voice held a slight edge, "Do you so doubt my ability's as a scientist? Do you think me some second rate researcher that would experiment on herself without being sure every variable had been thoroughly checked?"_

_"No..." he answered, a feeling of guilt washing over him as he tore away the third wing._

_"Good. If you of all people doubted me, I wouldn't know what to do." she informed him, her voice softening, "My dear Alfred, please understand, I won't be asleep forever."_

_"I don't want you to leave." he murmured as he pulled off the final wing, "I...I'm sorry I'm not the brother you deserve. I'm sorry I'm not smart enough to help you in the lab, or with anything else. Please, don't leave me..." the dragonfly wriggled around still, though escape was impossible._

_"Oh, Alfred..." she sighed and rubbed his back gently, "I wouldn't trade you for anyone in the world. And you can help me, by keeping my body safe while it adjusts to the virus. You are the only person I'd trust with this task. My life rests in your hands, if I'm taken out of stasis before enough time had passed, I will mutate."_

_He wordlessly stood and walked over to the ant enclosure. Part of him was thrilled she'd think so highly of him as to have him watch over her, but even so, fifteen years. She was asking him to live without her for fifteen years._

_He opened the lid and dropped the insect inside. They swarmed it, and within seconds it was buried in a living mound of ants. Alexia moved to stand next to him and together they watched as the dragonfly gave it's last twitches and was taken apart by the colony. "Can you do this, brother? Can I trust you with this?" she asked softly as she looked up at him._

_He met her gaze and stared into her eyes for a long moment. She was his sister. He loved her more than anything on the planet, and he would do anything she asked of him. "Yes." he answered finally, "I can do it."_

_"Good." she kissed him on the cheek and stepped away, toward the door, "Come, dinner had been prepared. We will dine together, and then you will help me activate the cryogenic chamber." her tone left no room for argument._

_"Okay." he answered and followed her, defeated. One meal, one meal was all he had left to share with her. He swallowed thickly and put on a smile. He'd try to be happy, for her. He'd try to enjoy their last moments together, and hope somehow, she'd change her mind before they were done. He knew she wouldn't, but oh, he wished she would._

**_End Flashback._**

"Al-ex-ah?"

Alfred jerked back to the present, the insect still writhing in his grasp. Elena stood in front of him, staring wide eyes at what he held. "Al-ex-ah, what is that?" she pointed at the creature, as if she'd thought he'd think she'd meant something else.

"A dragonfly." he replied, the memory forgotten, "You can touch it if you want, it won't bite." he smiled at her and held the creature out invitingly. She was giving him the oddest of looks... "What's wrong?"

"You sound like Al-fed." she said slowly, confusion in her voice.

What? He was...no... he _wasn't._ Whatever it was in his mind that kept the two personalities separate suddenly realized that he wasn't supposed to be Alfred at that point and quickly shifted him back to Alexia.

"Anisoptera." she told her the scientiffic name and motioned to the trapped insect, "They eat mostly other bugs, of which there are plenty here. We've had them shipped here to make this garden as natural as possible.

"Why you sound like Al-fed?" she pressed, uninterested in the information.

"I don't know what you're talking about." the woman replied and let the dragonfly go. It flew off as quickly as it could, easily disappearing into the maze of flowers. "Come, you must be hungry after all of this. I just realized I never prepared breakfast for you."

Moments later, Elena was happily eating her sandwich in the kitchen. "Tank you, Al-ex-ah."

"You're very welcome." she answered, "I'm afraid I have something to do. Will you stay here and wait?" the girl nodded, and Alexia hurried out of the room.

A few more moments passed, and she was in front of the bathroom mirror, greeting her brother warmly.

"So, what do you think?" he asked, "Isn't she adorable?"

"I admit, she has her moments." she answered with a smile.

"Thank you again for looking after her for awhile."

"I'll look after her tomorrow morning as well, if you'd like. For now, I have things I need to do."

"Okay, I'll see you later. Hey, Alexia...?" he paused as he went to leave the room, "Why is it we only ever talk in the bathroom?"

"...The lovely atmosphere?" she suggested. He nodded, as if that made perfect sense, and hurried down stares.


	6. Snow

"What did she do to you?" Alfred gasped at the sight of Elena in the old purple dress. It made her look even more like a young version of his sister, but that wasn't the point! Dresses were all right for Alexia, she was old enough to choose for herself, but not Elena! They lived in _Antarctica_, for crying out loud! She could get sick!

"Al-fed!" she greeted happily as she ran forward to hug him. He returned the affection and picked her up to spin her around a little, making her giggle. "I gots you some-tin." she said and held out a rose from the garden, "It's red like your shirt."

"Aww, thank you!" he took the flower and sniffed at it lightly, "It smells wonderful, Elena." he reached down and lightly tugged at her hand, "Come on, let's get you into some warmer clothes."

"But I not cold." she answered, confusion in her voice.

"Trust me."

* * *

><p>"There. Much better." he said as he had her stand in front of a mirror. He'd dressed her in one of his old outfits, a long sleeved red shirt and white pants. Much warmer than the dress, that lay on his bed.<p>

"Now I'm you." she said brightly, giggling at the image in the mirror.

"Wait, I need to get something else..." he rummaged through the closet, looking for the jacket he knew was in the back. He quickly found what he was looking for, as well as a pair of thick red gloves. He put them on her, "There."

"Al-fed." she complained quietly, "It's too hot...eep!" he suddenly picked her up and carried her out of the room. "Al-fed! Where we go-in?"

"Outside."

And he brought her to the front of the mansion and out into the cold air. There was snow everywhere, and from where they stood they could see the ocean that surrounded them. He put the girl down and she stared up at him curiously, "What we do out here?"

"Haven't you ever played in the snow before?" he asked. She shook her head and he smiled, "Well, we can build snowmen, or snow castles. We could make snow angels, or even have a snowball fight." he waited a moment, but she still didn't seem to understand how fun it could be. "Here," he gathered some snow in his hands, rolled it into a ball, and handed it to her, "Throw it at me."

She looked down at the ball, and back up at him. "Go on, throw it at me. It's snow. It won't hurt me."

"Kay..." after another moments hesitation, she tossed it lightly at him, hitting him in the chest.

"There. Now..." he scooped up some more snow, rolled it into a ball, and tossed it at her, hitting her shoulder. "There, we each have one point. Whoever has the most points at the end of...say, an hour, wins. We have ten minutes to set up our base, a wall of snow, to protect us from each others attack. Sound good?"

She had that look in her eyes again, like when she'd gone after him as a dinosaur. She smiled mischievously and nodded.

Ten minutes passed, and they both had sizable walls as their defense. "Ready?" he called over to her. When he saw her nod, he grinned, "Well, let the game begin!"

* * *

><p>Alfred gasped, barely dodging a snowball as he hid behind his wall to scoop together more snow. Elena...was surprisingly good at this. They were a half hour in, and he'd only managed to get three points. She'd gotten seven. He couldn't believe how fast she'd picked up on the rules, either.<p>

He heard the snow crackle, and knew she'd left the safety of her base. He took the chance, thinking that he could get in a couple points. He stood and found her within a couple feet of him, but before he could even get proper aim, he was hit in the face with snow. Before he could recover, she threw two more at him. He tried to retreat, but only succeeded in falling backwards onto the frozen ground. "Okay..."he muttered as he wiped the melting ice away from his eyes, "You win."

"Yay!" she jumped up and down excitedly, before lunging forth to wrap her arms around his neck in a hug.

After a moment, she let go and he stood, brushing off snow from his clothes, "How, are you so good at this?" he asked curiously, "And how did you know to sneak up on me like that?"

"Mama says I can't be scared to take chan-ses, like if the bad peoples aren't looking." she sang out, still overjoyed at the fact she'd won, "Let's play again, Al-fed!" she lightly tugged at his arm.

"Bad people?" Alfred asked, her words not something he expected to hear. Why would a mother say something like that to a child so young? He kneeled in front of her and gently held her shoulders to keep her still, "Elena, why would your mother tell you that?"

"I...are you mad?" she asked, her eyes widening at the sudden seriousness, "I sorry..."

"Ah, no I'm not mad!" he said hurriedly, the question pushed into the back of his mind at the hurt look she gave him, "I'm not mad at all! Come on, you wanted to play some more? I can show you how to make a snow man?"

"Yay!" he face lit up again at this suggestion.

Some time later, they had a snowman that stood just a little shorter than Alfred. It was lumpy and uneven, and they didn't have stones to give it a proper face, but it had been fun none the less. Alfred shivered lightly, the cold finally managing to seep through his clothes and chill him. "Let's go inside before we both fall ill, yes?" he smiled at her and brought her in.

Her statement still bothered him, but he'd talk to her about it at a latter time. For now, she needed dinner, and sleep. He really hoped she'd go to sleep, and not want to stay up all night again.

He sat her at the kitchen table and went to make her a sandwich...but there was no peanut butter left. He paused as he looked through the cupboards, "Um, Elena, are there any other foods you like?"

"Ice cream?" she said hopefully.

"I'm sorry, but we can't have ice cream for dinner." he paused, "Besides, I don't have any..." he continued to look, "Do you like ravioli?"

"What's that?" she asked.

"You've never had ravioli before? Never? Oh, you must try it then." he took the can out and opened it. She watched him put the contents into a pan and heat it over the stove. Soon enough, he placed the bowl in front of her, and she looked at it like it was some sort of alien.

"Go on, try it." he said encouragingly as he ate some from his own bowl. She poked at her food with her fork for a moment, and slowly took a bite out of it. "Do you like it?" he asked, grinning at the way her eyes widened a little.

"It's yummy Al-fed!" she exclaimed and proceeded to eat every single bite.

* * *

><p>After the kitchen had ben cleaned, he put her in one of his old pj's. He figured they'd be more comfortable to sleep in than daytime clothes. "So," he said casually, "Are we ready for bed yet?" <em>please, please, please, please...<em>

"No."

_NOOOOOO! (insert dramatic music)_ "What...what would you want to do then?" he asked quietly. He could already feel the exhaustion nip at the back of his mind...

"Tell me a story? Peeze?" she asked, reaching for his hand as she looked pleadingly up at him. He hesitated...did he even know any stories?

"O, okay." he said slowly as he picked her up and put her on his bed. She cuddled up next to him as he lay beside her and thought. What would be a good story for a little girl? He...had no idea...he took a deep breath, and just started talking.

"A long time ago, there was kingdom, large and one of the most powerful in the land. The castle, and the surrounding villages, was ruled by a king, as well as a kind prince and his beautiful princess. They lived together for several wonderful years. One day, the prince found out a horrible secret about the king."

Elena gasped quietly, "What was it?"

"The king was serving a nasty dragon, taking the gold and treasures the prince and princess worked so hard for and giving them to it. So, the princess came up with a plan, and asked the prince for help. Of course, he agreed, for he loved her more than anyone in the entire kingdom. Together, they tricked the king into drinking a special potion, causing him to sleep. They sent him off to another kingdom, where he would be as powerless as any commoner."

"What happen to him?"

"The king? He...was forced to settle down, start another family. Now-"

"And the drag-gone?" she asked.

"The dragon, devastated by the loss of the gold constantly coming in, searched and searched for the missing king, but never, ever found him, no matter how hard it looked. Finally, it gave up, and went to bother another kingdom. Now, the princess fell in love with something. No, not love, obsessed. She became obsessed with this illness, a rare and cursed thing. She believed that she could use the illness for power, to make her stronger than even the dragon. The prince felt worried, so very worried about her, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't distract her from the dangerous grounds she was walking. One day, she came up with a new plan. She would let herself become infected with this illness."

Elena gasped again, completely immersed in the story.

"Her idea was that, were she to sleep long enough, the illness would grow within her, and merge with her. It would give her powers that their kingdom had never heard of. It wouldn't be a illness anymore, it would be a strength. The prince didn't want her to do it, for he loved her, and worried that it wouldn't turn out well. She wouldn't listen, and he had no other choice but to follow her orders to cast a spell on her to make her sleep for years and years. He would have to watch over her sleeping form, and keep her safe. As the time passed, the people fled the kingdom, and the prince was left alone in his castle. He was lonely for a long time, but he wouldn't give up. He waited and waited, and one day she awoke. They were so happy to be together again. They were the only ones there, but it was all right, because they finally had each other. Months passed, and they decided to go for a walk through their empty kingdom. The prince went a head of the princess, for she had things to finish before she could leave the castle. While out, the prince found a young girl, another princess from a land far away from there. She'd been kidnapped by the dragon, but she'd managed to escape." he cuddled closer to her, and closed his eyes, forcing himself not to yawn. "He took her to the castle, and the three of them had lots of fun and laughs together. The end..."

"Tank you." she whispered quietly. He cracked his eye open to glance at her almost asleep form.

"Your welcome, Elena. Pleasant dreams."

They both fell asleep within a few minutes.


	7. Wig

Days passed, and the routine continued. Alexia would watch Elena in the garden early in the day, and then Alfred would play with her until it was time for bed. Almost a week passed since Elena had been found in the greenhouse, and Alexia decided they should do something other than look at the flowers.

Alexia smiled and gently nudged the child awake, "Good morning!" she greeted brightly, "I made you breakfast. Look, it's smiling for you." she showed the barely awake girl a plate with two pieces of toast, two eggs and a single slice of bacon arranged in a happy face.

Elena sat up and yawned, her mind slow to register her soundings so soon after sleep. Finally, she noticed the food in front of her, and smiled, "Tank you!"

"You're welcome." she said, "I thought, perhaps, we could go to the entertainment room today."

"En-tur-tan-ment?" asked the girl curiously, unsure of what the word meant.

"I thought we could watch a movie, or play a game, if you wish." Alexia said, "There is this one movie I believe you would love."

And so it was decided. They watched a cartoon, and the girl cuddled up to her on the sofa. It was a cute little movie, about a dog that thought he was a super hero, but in reality he was just a star on t.v. Elena was fully immersed, giggling happily and gasping in suspense, depending on what was happening at that particular moment. About half way through the movie, Alexia started to dose off and her body instinctively leaned into the girl for warmth.

Elena yelped as Alexia lay practically her entire bodyweight on her. She whined and squirmed, hoping to wake the woman up. Nothing she did seemed to work, and Alexia was heavy! Elena wriggled and writhe until finally she regained her freedom. She stood up off the sofa and let out a soft squeak of victory...

And paused in confusion. Something had gotten caught on the sleeve of her dress. She pulled it off to find...it was hair. Bright, blond hair. She looked from the soft bundle in her hands and up to Alexia, who had very short hair. Like Alfred...

"Al-fed?" she asked curiously and poked him lightly. "Al-fed? Did you know you're a girl?"

He finally stirred, and opened his eyes to find Elena poking him. "Oh, hey." he said brightly as he sat up, "Did I know what, now?"

"You're a girl!" she said firmly and held out the wig to him, "You're Al-ex-ah!"

He chuckled softly at her accusation, "No, I'm me. And I'm most defiantly not a girl. Where did you get this?" he took the wig from her hands and looked at it curiously.

"You had it on your head!" she pressed, not about to give up, "And if you not a girl, why you in a dress?"

"I'm not in a dress, silly." he smiled, his mind refusing to acknowledge the truth in her words. "Wait here, I'll put this away. It's probably Alexia's. Though I've no idea why she'd need one..." he stood and left the frustrated girl in the room.

Elena determinedly stood and quietly followed. She carefully peaked her head out the door, and watched him put the wig back on. Her eyes narrowed slightly. She was right! Alfred was secretly a girl. Now, all she had to to was prove it to him.

She closed the door and dashed back to the sofa as 'Alexia' turned to walk back into the room.

Elena watched the woman closely as she sat next to her, "You're a girl." she stated.

"And so are you." replied Alexia, giving an amused smile.

Elena sighed and cuddled up to her again. There had to be some way to prove it...

After the movie, Alexia sat Elena at the kitchen table, and told her to wait for Alfred, like always. She nodded and smiled, and the woman left. Little Elena waited for a few moments, then followed silently behind. She had to keep herself from giggling. She felt like a super spy, like that lady she saw!

Finally they reached the bathroom upstairs, and Elena heard her speak, going back and fourth between voices. As carefully as possable, she sneaked into the room and stood behind the woman standing there.

"So, did she like the movie?" asked Alfred's voice.

"She seemed to, though she did get a bit distracted..." Alexia's answered thoughtfully.

Elena crouched down and eyed the blond hair so very high above her. Maybe if Alfred saw it come off himself, he'd believe her? Surely he would! There would be no way he could deny it if it was right in front of his face, right?

She jumped, her hand reaching up and...yes! Her fingers wrapped tightly around the very end of her hair, and as she fell back to the ground, the wig going with her.

There was a long moment of silence. Then the air was filled with an hysterical scream as Alfred ran from the room, leaving a very confused girl behind. She tilted her head curiously. Why would he just run off like that? Oh, he must have wanted to play tag! She laughed and ran after him, the wig left forgotten on the floor.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Not exactally happy with how this chapter turned out, and it's a bit short, but I hope you all enjoyed it anyway. :) And thank you all for your reviews, they encourage me to keep wrighting. ^^<strong>

**Oh, and about the question, 'How did Elena get to the Antartica base?' I have an answer for that. But I'm not telling just yet. *evil smile***


	8. Really? Makeup?

Alfred sped down the stairs as quickly as he could, his mind fighting to keep the two personas separated. He had to get away from any mirror. He didn't yet realize why, but every fiber of his being demanded that not be allowed to see himself again. There was only one place he could go where there was no chance of finding his reflection again...

He rushed outside into the icy wind, his body heat immediately dropping. His head hurt, so badly...

He shivered, his arms wrapping around himself in an attempt to keep some warmth from being stollen by the freezing air. The dress really wasn't the best thing to have on out there.

_Why was he in a dress?_

* * *

><p>Elena frowned and looked around. Where did he go? "Al-fed!" she called, "Al-ex-ah!"<p>

She'd tried to follow him, but he'd been too fast for her. So, she'd tried to find him on her own...and had gotten lost. "Why the house so big?" she murmured to herself sadly. Not even her old house had been like this!

She came upon a huge dining room, much bigger than the kitchen she'd been in before. "Wow..." she looked wide eyed up at the ceiling, so high above her it made her feel dizzy. It seemed to take forever just to walk from one end of the room to the other, but she did it.

Elena came upon a long, dark hallway. "Al-fed?" she yelled out again, "Al-ex-ah?" she used both names, in case Alfred was a girl again and would only answer to that name, "Where'd you go?"

She walked down the hall, and found a long set of stairs. She tilted her head curiously, had he gone down there? Without a second thought, she started down them.

She found herself in a large room with lots of blinking lights. Elena giggled softly, it almost looked like a spaceship or something. Everything was metal and bright, and there was a glowing fish tank in the center of it all. The soft, blue light drew the attention of the child, and she approached it slowly.

"Found you!" she said brightly. Alfred, well, Alexia, since he had long hair at the moment, was floating in the tank. She appeared to be sleeping. "Al-ex-  
>ah?" Elena tapped her fingers against the glass, "Why you sleeping?" no answer, "How'd you get down here so fast-ly?" again, no response what-so-ever.<p>

Elena paused to think for a moment. Experimentally, she hit the glass with her hand, producing a hallow thunk. "Al-fed, are you a fish now?" Nothing.

She sighed and sat down, unsure of what to do next. She couldn't figure out why Alfred was a girl, and she had no idea why he would try to sleep in a fish tank. "Al-fed," she stated, "You're weird."

* * *

><p>Alfred gasped and went back into the mansion, his back pressed up against the door as he stood there shivering. He'd stayed out as long as he'd been able, but with this dress he was wearing, it hadn't been long. The more he thought about it, the more his head throbbed. Why, <em>why<em> was he wearing a _dress_ of all things?

Perhaps Alexia would know? So, after the chill had finally eased from his body, he looked for her. He looked everywhere he could think of. The attic, her room, his room, the kitchen, the entertainment room. He couldn't find her. And, where was Elena? Where could she possibly have gone? He hoped she was all right. He realized he'd basically just ran from the room screaming, and he felt bad about that. He didn't know what had come over him...

He went back to the bathroom, and found both Elena and his sister gone. He caught sight of himself in the mirror, and froze. There he was, in a dress, white gloves and...make-up? _Really? Make-up?_

Then he spotted the wig on the floor.

He looked from the hairpiece to the mirror, and back again. He reached down and picked it up, the blond locks feeling soft and light in his hands. His head throbbed particularly painfully, and something inside him practically screamed for him to just walk away. But...

Alfred slowly put the wig on, and examined himself closely. He waved a hand, and watched the reflection mimic the action. No, it couldn't be...

He remembered all the times he'd spoken to her recently. Each and every one had been in that room. Had...had it been a lie?

He swallowed thickly, "Hello, Alexia. How are you today?" a moment passed, then, he spoke again, in a high pitched voice, "Fine, Alfred, and you?"

He flinched, realizing he'd matched the same tone she'd been speaking with. He remembered Elena's words form before, _'Al-fed, did you know you're a girl?'_

He pulled the wig off, leaned back against the wall, and slid down to the floor. He gazed absent mindedly at the blond hair, "Am I crazy?" he whispered. Memories flashed through his head, memories of himself and Elena. But, he hadn't been 'Alfred' at the time. If he'd just...been dreaming about Alexia...that meant she was still asleep, right?. He whimpered softly, he was late. It had been months since the time she'd told him to awaken her. She'd hate him, he was sure. What kind of brother forgets their sister like that?

Elena...where was she? He needed to find her. He tossed the wig onto the floor and looked for her. She was a little girl in a giant mansion, she could get hurt somehow. He had to find her before he did anything else.

* * *

><p>After about five minutes of waiting Elena, like all children, grew bored. So, she went to explore the room. The flashing lights were beautiful to look at, all the different colors going off.<p>

She came across a long panel, and approached it. She wasn't tall enough to reach the top of it, but that was okay, because there was a chair there. Giggling to herself mischievously, she crawled on top of it, and gasped at all the buttons displayed there. Particularly, one big red one in the center. Elena considered it for a moment, then with a smile, she pressed it.

A low hum filled the room, and she yelped and fell off from the chair in shock. Whining, she sat up, and watched the liquid in the tank drop. Soon, it was empty, and the person inside came out, looking around the room, slightly dazed.

"Al-fed!" Elena shouted happily, glad he was awake again, even if he was still a girl. She ran up to him and hugged him tightly, "I miss-ted you!"


	9. A Rather Strange Awakening

Alexia stepped from the chamber, blinking as her vision slowly adjusted to the light. It may have been rather dark in the room, but after such a long time with her eyes closed, even the soft blinking lights were momentarily painful.

"Al-fed!" an overjoyed voice greeted as she felt a pair of arms wrap around her legs, "I miss-ted you!"

What...?

Alexia blinked again, her eyesight returning slowly, and stared down at the small girl as she let go and stepped back. The child...looked just like her. A mirror image of her younger self, she was even wearing an old dress of hers. She smiled happily, "Are you done being a fish?"

The woman tilted her head in curiosity, why was there a little girl in there? Alfred was the one that was supposed to awaken her. She felt a stab of anger toward her sibling, not only for being late(according to the electronic calendar the far wall, it was months after the time she'd told him to wake her up) but also far the fact he'd put her in potential danger by letting someone else in there. Not that a little girl posed much of a threat, but still... She wasn't happy, but it didn't show as she addressed the girl in front of her, "My name is Alexia. Do you know where Alfred is?"

"You Al-fed." she replied, "You turn-ded into a girl. 'Mem-ber?"

Alexia raised an eyebrow at the child. This child thought she were her brother? And...wait, Alfred turned into a girl? It that what she just said? "Very well." she said, not thinking it important to sort out at the moment, "Come, then."

As she led the way out of the room, she realized something. She could feel the plants in the garden. It was an odd sensation... Actually, she could feel every form of plant life on the island. Curiously, she found if she concentrated enough, she could control them. Make them move, make them grow. She smiled to herself, pleased with this ability T-Veronica had given her. She knew she'd been right...

There was another presence. She felt it, one other person just outside the mansion. She assumed it was her brother, and the smile turned mischievous.

* * *

><p>Alfred sighed and searched the mansion for what must have been the second time, and still, he hadn't found little Elena. He leaned against the wall, worry setting in. Had she gotten lost? Was she hurt? Had she gone outside? No...she'd freeze out there! Stupid him as Alexia, for insisting she wear that old outfit. It wasn't suited at all for the Antarctic.<p>

He rushed out into the cold air again, shivering as the wind chilled him instantly. He searched for her, growing more anxious by the moment. Where could she possibly be? If he were that young, where would he go?

Suddenly, a shiver that had nothing to do with the cold traveled up his spine. It was almost as if he were being watched...

Movement caught his eye, and he turned toward it. He screamed and stumbled backward, tripping to land hard on his back. A long, thick, green thing towered over him. With a frightened squeak, he rolled out of the way just as it lunged for him. He stood and ran off as fast as he could as the thing readied itself for another attack. Why did he have to be wearing high heels? They were completely useless for running! He managed to kick the annoying things off, but immediately regretted the decision as his feet sank into the biting cold snow.

* * *

><p>"So, may I ask your name?" Alexia said as she gazed curiously at herself in the mirror. Fifteen years had matured her into a beautiful woman, though oddly only her body had grown, not her hair or nails. She'd put a dress on, and had a brush in her hand as she removed each and every knot.<p>

"Elena, silly!" giggled the child. She sat upon the bed, thrilled that 'Al-fed' was there.

"Ah, I see. Last name?"

"Umm...A...As...As-fort?" she stumbled over the word, obviously not used to saying it.

Alexia paused with the brush mid-stroke through her hair. After a moment, she placed the object back on the dressed, and turned to look quizzically at Elena. "Your last name is Ashford?"

"I thin so...mama said couple times." the girl tilted her head a little in thought.

"And who is your mother?"

"The best-est lady ever!" she declared proudly. A moment passed, and sadness entered her eyes, "But, I don't see her much...and I don't see her at all cause the bad thing made me leave."

The woman sat next to her and gently placed a gloved hand on her shoulder, "Why don't you tell me more about your mother and this...'bad thing?'"

* * *

><p>Alfred gasped as once again the plant thing lunged at him again and broke a hole into the side of the mansion. What in the world was happening? Did some virus get out? Was this thing infected? But how? He always kept all the virus' in check, there was no way any of them could have gotten out.<p>

Finally, he managed to get back to the door, but just as he reached it another thing came up out of the ground. It hovered over him threateningly, and he just barely managed to leap out of the way. The two things collided, but they recovered quickly and chased him again. He really, really hoped Elena hadn't encountered them. Had he put her in danger somehow? Was this his fault?

* * *

><p>"Mama came in, and she was sad." whispered the girl as she leaned her head against Alexia's chest. The woman responded by rubbing her back comfortingly, "Her face was all wet. I could hear all them, yelling. I was scared..." she whimpered lightly at the memory, "Mama said I had to go on a plane ride, to a safe place. But, a mon-ster came. There was a hole, but it was too little for her. So, she said run, so I did."<p>

"What happened next?" Alexia asked curiously, calmly. Her plants continued to chase the human around, and she would have laughed had it not been for the conversation she was having with Elena. Laughing after a story like that would have been inappropriate.

"I look-ed for a long time. Then, I found the plane. I got in it, and then I was here. Mama said I hast to wait in the safe place, but she's not here yet. I miss her."

"Hmm..." Alexia thought for a moment. Chances were, her mother did not intend for the child to end up in Antarctica, and that she'd gotten on the wrong plane. The island wasn't exactly safe, especially for a little girl. Then again, considering how much they looked so much alike, she couldn't help but wonder it Alfred was her father... but she highly doubted it. The child was calling her by Alfred's first name, not 'daddy' or anything of the sort. Of course, there was the possibility her brother could have fathered her, and had simply not told her, but that was very unlikely. Alfred was the type of person who'd spoil their offspring, bursting with happiness each time their parental name was uttered.

Alexia sighed and pulled Elena onto her lap, her eyes gazing into girls' sad ones. "Don't cry." she said firmly, her gloved hand moving to wipe away the wetness that had been forming.

"Did she forget 'bout me, Al-fed?" she asked mournfully.

The woman sighed and cradled Elena in her arms, "I don't believe so." she answered, stroking the girls hair. "No parent ever forgets their children, even if they're cruel enough try. Even then, the image is burned into their mind, they can't ever forget." this child acted much like her brother, she thought. She sighed again. She wouldn't tell her that her mother really was going to come for her, for she didn't know herself. She wasn't going to lie.

They were both quiet for a few minutes, neither having anything to say.

Alexia tensed suddenly, a grin crossing her face, and despite herself she chuckled. Elena pulled back and looked curiously at her, "What so funny?"

* * *

><p>Alfred skidded to a halt, his eyes widening at the corner he'd just trapped himself in. He turned and faced the plant creatures and stepped back, the wall behind him pressed into his back as a cruel reminder that he was trapped, like a rat in a cage. The two vines hovered in front of him for a long moment, before one of them lunged. He tried to dodge out of the way, but the other one lashed out at his legs, resulting in him falling face first into the snow.<p>

Before he could right himself, one thick vine wrapped tightly around his stomach and lifted him, screaming, into the air.

* * *

><p>"I'm playing a game," the woman responded to the girl's question, "And I just won."<p>

"I didn't see you playing a game." replied Elena suspiciously.

Alexia's grin widened, "Open the window, then, if you don't believe me."

So, she got up off the bed and walked over to the large window and, after messing with the lock a little, got it open. Icy air rushed into the room. "Kay. I did it." she turned as looked at Alexia, with a _'now what?'_ expression.

"Come back over here. Sit by me."

So, Elena sat next to her. The woman was watching the open window, so the little girl did as well. Seconds ticked by, "Al-fed, what-" before she could ask the question, the vine slid into the room, dropped Alfred unceremoniously to the floor, and left. Alexia stood and closed the window.

"Hello, brother!" she sang out as she turned to look at his shivering form. Instantly she froze. He was in a dress. He was wearing _one of her dresses._ She could understand Elena in one of her old outfits, but _Alfred?_ Her _brother_. In a _dress!_

Alfred groaned, the beginnings of several nasty bruises already starting to form. Confused, yet thrilled to be away from the plants and out of the cold, he went to stand up. He saw Alexia and fell back to the ground in shock, a hand immediately going to his hair to check if he'd somehow gotten the wig back on. No, he was still himself...and he was sure that there was no mirror in front of the window, either...

The two siblings just stared at each other, each too shocked to move or speak.

Elena was the first to break the silence, "There's two Al-fed's?" she looked from one to the other, confusion on her face, "But...why there two?"

"I, for one, would very much like to know that as well." Alexia said slowly, "My dear Alfred, did I miss something important while I slept?"

Slowly, he finally managed to pull himself up off the floor. He nervously fiddled with the gloves he wore, his gaze directed at the ground, away from her. "I, I don't know... I, I think...I thought I was, uh, you, for a while...I don't...know why..." he swallowed thickly, "It, is you, right, Al-Alexia? I'm, not dreaming you?"

He saw the bottom of her dress come into his view, and he flinched. She couldn't be there, he hadn't woken her yet. He was just crazy. But, she put a hand softly under his chin and forced him to look at her. If she was touching him, she had to be real, right? "Alfred what happened during these fifteen years? Were you so lonely without me you found the need to impersonate me?"

"I don't know." he answered truthfully. Neither of them noticed the little girl sneak out of the room.

"I should punish you, you know." she remarked, anger in her voice. He gasped and tried to pull away, but she wrapped an arm around his waist to stop him from moving, "But, I do believe running for your life from a giant vine in the Arctic wind with only one of _my_ dresses on is enough." he stopped and stared at her, wide eyed. Finally, she smiled, "Did you miss me, brother?"

Alfred squealed and threw himself at her, his arms wrapping around her as they both fell to the ground, with him on top. "Alexia!" he said, "I missed you so much! You wouldn't believe! Every day without you was the loneliest day ever!"

"Except when you looked in a mirror?" she asked, gazing at the top of his head as he hugged her tightly, much like he had the day she'd left. But this time, he was much happier. This time, he was saying hello, and not goodbye.

"Oh, Alexia, I'm so sorry..." he pushed himself up, with both hands on the floor on either side of her. "Can you ever forgive me? I didn't mean to. I'm sorry." he grinned as brightly at her as he could, "You know a simple piece of glass could never replace you."

"I should hope not." she folded her arms over her chest and smiled again. She was just as beautiful as she'd been years before. "Now, I believe you should give me my clothes back, and go put on your own. You...do wear clothes _other_ than mine, yes?"

"Oh, oh yes, of course..." slowly, he got off of her and helped her up, "But, I don't want to be alone...what if you disappear before I come back?"

"I won't disappear, brother." she cooed softly, and placed a hand on his cheek, "I-"

"Here." Elena had come back, and carried the wig in her hands. She held it out to Alfred, "Put it on! Put it on!" she demanded excitedly.

"Um...okay..." hesitantly, he pulled it on as she'd told him. She responded by clapping and jumping up and down happily.

"Now we all Al-fed!" she exclaimed.

His jaw practically dropped at her words, the three of them were dressed as his sister, but they were all him? Alexia, who seemed to find this amusing, laughed. "Darling brother, I do believe you've traumatized her. Poor thing."

"I, I didn't, I..." he stuttered, unsure how to respond.

His sister lightly nudged his arm. "Go, I will watch her, and we will wait here until you get back. Then, perhaps, we can convince her she and I are not you. I promise, we'll still be here. Have I ever lied to you?"

"No." he admitted. Even so, he didn't want to leave. He nodded and lightly kissed her cheek, before hurrying out of the room. The sooner it was done and over with, the sooner he'd be back with her and Elena. He couldn't wait...


	10. Games or Experiments?

When Alfred returned, in his own clothes, he was greeted with a rather odd sight. Alexia was on her back on the bed, her head propped up with pillows, and Elena sat on her stomach. His sister stared at the girl with detached curiosity, both hands clawed and positioned near the child's ribcage. Elena gazed down at Alexia's hands suspiciously.

"Alexia?" Alfred asked as he moved closer to the bed. Elena, distracted, looked up at him. As soon as her gaze left Alexia's hands, the woman struck, digging her fingers into Elena's sides and making her laugh. After about five seconds, she pulled her hands away and held them as before.

"Al-fed!" Elena complained, "Other Al-fed keeps... Hey! You turned into a boy." the second the girl was, once more, distracted, Alexia pressed her fingers into her ribs. Elena giggled and squirmed, and after another five seconds, they both went back to their previous positions. The girl glared at his sister, who returned the look with an amused smile.

"Alexia, are you picking on little Elena?" Alfred said, false shock in his voice as he sat beside them, grinning.

"Only a little bit, brother." she answered, eyes glinting evilly. Alfred chuckled quietly, and poked Elena, pulling her focus away and causing the process to repeat.

Less than a minute later, they'd ganged up on the girl, both tickling her mercilessly. The poor girl laughed and wriggled, but couldn't break away from the mischievous twins.

"Enough, brother." Alexia finally said as she pulled away, "Let her breath." immediately, Alfred stopped, and Elena scooted to the far end of the bed, watching them carefully.

Alfred chuckled again, "That was fun."

"Oh? Was it now?" she smirked at him, her eyes still flaring with that evil glint. She inched closer to him, a hand held in front of herself threateningly.

"Alexia? What are you-ah!" he was interrupted as his sister easily pinned him on his back. Her hands ran up and down his sides and twisted into the sensitive flesh of his neck. He laughed and giggled, squirming in vain much like Elena had done.

When she decided he'd had enough as well, she got off him and sat at the edge of the bed, opposite of Elena. She waited for him to catch his breath before she spoke again, "Now, do the two of you wish to play a game, or are you too exhausted to move?" she smiled softly.

"Yay! Games!" Elena cheered as she hopped off the bed, "Al-fed! Peeze? Can we play with Al-fed?"

"'Alexia.' My name is Alexia." the woman said firmly. The girl paused and looked back an fourth between the two. Finally, she tugged on Alfred's arm.

"Al-ex-ah, can-"

"And I am Alfred." he said, grinning at the frustrated look she gave him.

"Al-fed...can we play with Al-ex-ah?" she glared at him, obviously not wanting to be corrected again. Alfred chuckled and nodded, and she lit up. "Yay!"

* * *

><p>"Alexia, is she even old enough to even be able to understand the rules?" Alfred stared at the little girl and the chess set that separated them.<p>

"You learned it at her age." the woman countered, standing next to the table, watching the two of them carefully.

"Yes, but...I wasn't a normal child, either."

"Humor me, brother." before he could protest further, she picked up a pawn, "Now Elena, listen carefully. This piece..." she went through each and every single chess piece with her, explaining how each moved and to win the game one person had to take the other's king, while protecting your own. "Now, white moves first. Go on, Elena."

Alfred sighed and folded his arms. She was five. There was no way she'd understand how the game works. He was spending time with them, so he wouldn't complain too much. But still, he didn't much relish playing someone that didn't present much of a challenge.

Elena gazed blankly at her little army of pieces, and Alfred was tempted to point out her age again... but she reached out, and moved one of the pawns two spaces forward. "I do it okay?" she asked Alexia.

"Splendid. Your turn, Alfred."

Hesitantly, he moved one of his own pawns to sit near hers. She countered by moving another pawn up one space, putting it in a position to take his should he take hers. He moved one of his knights, so did she. He fell one of her pawns, and she took his knight.

_What the...?_

On it went, back and fourth. Alexia corrected the child whenever she tried to make an illegal move, which wasn't nearly as often as he would have expected. Soon, both players had lost over half of their pieces. He couldn't help but think back to their snowball fight, how she'd managed to beat him so easily. But this was more complicated than snow!

Back and fourth, he'd make a go for her king, she'd block it. She'd try to assault his queen, he'd back it out of her way. Until finally, there was a gap in her defenses, and with a feeling of relief, he took her king.

"Checkmate." he breathed, his eyes locked on hers. Beating her should not have been that hard...

"Yay!" she cheered, "Al-fed wins! Again! Peeze?" she smiled brightly, giving him her best puppy face.

"Actually, if it's the same to the both of you, I have another game I'd like to see you two play. In fact, I'll join you for this one." Alexia lightly patted her confused brother on the head, and took them to another table. This time, they played Monopoly. The game that's one part luck, two part's intellect.

Like before, his sister kept her from accidently making illegal moves while they played. An hour passed before they'd finished. Alexia won, of course. Elena had gone bankrupt first, as Alfred had almost ten minutes afterworlds. This worried the man further, the child was five._ Five!_ She should _not_ be able to last that long!

Alexia put the game away, and smiled kindly at them, "That was fun. We should do it again, soon. Now, are either of you hungry?" they nodded, "Well, then, we shall get dinner started. Elena, will you stay here and watch a movie while we cook?"

"Kay, Al-fed."

"Alexia." she corrected.

"Al-ex-ah..." Alfred chuckled as the girl tilted her head in confusion. She could be so adorable... but...how did she...?

"Good girl. Brother, set up the movie, then meet me in the kitchen."

* * *

><p>"Alfred, we need to discuss something." Alexia said as he entered the room, not even bothering to look up from the vegetables she was cutting. "First, will you peel those potatoes for me?"<p>

He sat at the table and did as asked. After a long moment of silence, Alexia spoke again, "My dear Alfred, is there any way, any at all, that Elena could be your descendent?"

"My...descendent? You mean...? No. Why?"

"She looks like me." Alexia replied as she put the vegetables into a pot of water, "But that's not the only reason. Her last name is Ashford."

"What?" in his shock, he dropped the potato he'd been peeling, which proceeded to roll off the table. He hurried to retrieve it, "How did you find out?"

"I asked her." she said bluntly, "So, I've conducted a couple experiments in the form of the games we played. She has an elevated ability to learn and retain information." she turned to him, her arms folded over her chest, "I've come to two possibilities. The first one is that she is directly related to us. The only living person with Ashford blood able to procreate these last fifteen years would be you. So, if you didn't have her, this is impossible. The second," her expression darkened slightly, "Is that somebody's managed to find and use Alexander's research."

"But how could that be? No one would have access to it."

"Do you know if our old mansion, in England, is safe? There is a chance it has been broken in to."

"They'd need the three jewels."

"Not if they destroyed the door." Alexia took the bowl of now peeled potatoes and started cutting them up to place in the bowl, "Umbrella, perhaps. They are the type to steal research that doesn't belong to them. Especially the little lab rat, Birkin. "

"I...but..." Alfred trailed off, unsure of what to say next. He'd noticed similarities, but, he'd never thought they could actually be the same. "She's just a little girl." he finally said, feeling protective over her, "She's done nothing wrong."

"I never implied she did. Elevated intelligence or not, she's only a child. I...interesting."

"What?" she didn't answer, "Alexia? Are you alright? What's interesting?" she'd gone very still. Unable to wait for a response, he stood and touched her shoulder lightly. She turned to look at him, a small smile on her face as she showed him the knife she'd been using. It had a burn mark on it.

"Apparently, control over plants isn't the only thing Veronica has given me." she brought the blade to her finger and slid it quickly across the skin to form a small cut. Blood came from the wound, and instantly burst into flame. Within seconds, the fire burned itself out, and the only sign that anything had happened was another black mark on the metal. The cut had healed itself.

"Wow..." Alfred took her hand in his to get a better look at it, "Not even a scratch. Or a burn."

"There you are!" Elena shouted happily and ran at him, hugging him around the waist. "I gots bored. So I found you." she smiled up at him, "Can we play some-tin else?"

"Elena..." he's been about to remind her she'd been told to wait in the room, but...no, she was fine. He hugged her back, grinning. So what if she weren't a normal girl like he'd thought? Nothing had changed. "I was helping Alexia with dinner, so I might not be able to play right now..."

"Nonsense." his sister replied as she put the knife in the sink and grabbed another one, "We have discussed the matter at hand, nothing can be done about it at this moment. Go, play. Has she seen the amusement park?"

Alfred froze, his stomach twisting at the memory. It took just a moment too long for him to try and answer, "Y-"

"I think she'd like the marry-go-round. You should ride it with her."

Elena gasped, "Horsey-go-round? Can we, Al-fed? Peeeeeeeeeeze?" she looked up at him, with those puppy eyes, and he felt his heart melt a little.

"Yes..." he finally said, unable to turn her down after a look like that. _Why, Alexia_? he thought to himself, _Why did you have to remind her_? Trying not to whimper, he led the girl out of the room, toward his fate. Doomed he was, to another night of nausea.

"Dinner will be ready in a half hour. Stay up there until then." Alexia called before they'd gotten out of earshot.

Alfred moaned dramatically, "I'm going to need the bucket again..."

"Yay!" Elena giggled, skipping happily next to him.


	11. Please, Stay

Alexia walked up to the attic with a tray that held two full bowls in her hands. She would have taken three with her, but the stew wasn't as appealing as she'd expected it to be. In fact, when she'd tested it for taste, it had been like eating mud. She could only reason that the virus inside her was at fault for this change. She wondered if she would no longer have to eat, or if perhaps her body simply required other foods. It was something she would have to look in to.

Upon entering the attic, she was faced with the image of her brother, who lay on his back on the floor, looking like he was going to be violently ill. Elena was sitting next to him, poking him every few seconds.

"Alfred?" she asked. he moaned softly in reply.

Elena looked over at her, "Al-fed seepy." she stated brightly, "He was seepy last time, too."

"Ah, I see. Dear brother, do you have motion sickness?" she placed the tray on the floor near the two, "Dinner is ready. It might help to settle your stomach."

"Thank you...Alexia..." he breathed out, "I'll eat as soon as I can sit up..."

She nodded and moved away from them to sit on one of the horses. She remembered this thing. It had been one of her favorite rides, long ago. The familiar painted wood was smooth against her hand as she absentmindedly brushed her fingers over the fake animals's head. A soft sigh escaped her as she closed her eyes.

Was Noesferatu still there, hidden in that room? Was their father alive after all this time, with the virus still coursing through his veins? Had he changed at all these past years?

Elena, was she truly a second attempt at Veronica incarnate? Had Umbrella, or some other organization stolen the research and tried the experiment that had resulted in Alfred and herself? It seemed to be the only possibility.

Alfred... they'd been separated for so long... she'd been aware of time passing, while in the tank. She'd been able to dream, yes, but even so, she felt every second as it passed by. It... had been unpleasant, to say the least. There were times she'd thought she'd never get out. She'd...missed him...

She felt something brush against her ankle and looked to see Elena staring up at her. Alfred was sitting up, carefully sipping at his stew. "You should be eating, before it gets cold." she said.

"Why you not eat-in?" she asked curiously, "You o-k?"

"I'm...fine." she answered. The little girl pouted, giving her the impression that she didn't believe her. The woman sighed again and picked up the child to place next to her on the horse. "Nothing is wrong."

"You look like mama does when she fights with that one mis-ter." she leaned against Alexia's arm, her soft blue eyes focused on the older woman's face, "I dun like it. I can help?"

Alexia softly pat her on the head, "I'm alright. I promise." this girl, she was so cute and innocent. She made her smile. The woman lightly stroked the child's hair and closed her eyes again. "What's your mother like? Describe her."

"She's really pretty, and really, really tall. She wears a big white shirt."

"You mentioned a man. Is he your father?"

"What 'fah-ter' mean?"

Alexia opened her eyes and looked down at her, "A male parent, usually opposite a mother. A father looks after a child just as a mother does."

"Like Al-fed?" Elena asked, smiling brightly at her.

"I suppose so." Alexia laughed, very quietly. That...didn't add up. If she came from the same experiment they had, then she should have a father, not a mother. The person she saw as her mother couldn't be so, because the female parent would be Veronica, who'd been dead for years. "This man you mentioned, that fights with her, what's he like?"

"He has a white shirt too..." she snuggled up to Alexia, and rested her head against her side. "I dun likes him."

"Everything alright?" Alfred asked, approaching the two.

"I'm simply thinking, brother."

"I have a penny."

She laughed, "Do you feel better?"

He nodded, "Yeah, I-" a loud beep interrupted him. "What...?" he pulled out a pager, looking at it as if it were a three headed alien. "No one ever pages me. This is for emergencies only."

"Go, find out what's wrong. We'll be fine." he nodded and rushed out of the room. Alexia focused again on the girl, "So, you like this ride, yes? Want to go again?"

"Yay! Peeze?" the woman laughed again, and one of her plants broke into the room, creating a hole in the wall. The thick vine reached over and pressed the button for them, and Elena gasped, "You do that?" Alexia nodded, "You're a sup-ah hero!" the girl giggled and hugged her as the ride started up, slowly spinning them round and round. She didn't understand how her brother could have gotten sick from this...then again, she didn't plan on riding it for half an hour.

After the horse came to a stop, she placed Elena back on the floor, "Now, go eat." the girl smiled and skipped back to the bowl she'd left behind.

Was their mansion in England the same? Or had it changed? She could remember the day she left that place, every detail burned in her mind. The green grass, the smell of the flowers, the little fountain in the garden... everything replaced with coldness and ice. Snow, however, was beautiful in it's own way. Deadly, yet incredibly fragile. One wrong touch and the smooth surface becomes rough, imperfect. It depressed her at the time, considering she'd been working on the cryo tank, hiding it from Alfred until she was sure she could get it to work. She remembered the day she'd told him, the day she'd gone to sleep. He'd actually cried, as the thing filled with freezing liquid.

Was the lab rat still at Umbrella? She couldn't help but smirk at the thought, Birkin had despised her and her brother. What would he think or her return? She could only imagine the look on his face should he see her again.

Alfred came back. She watched him slink off to sit in a far corner, away from the two females. Curious, she got off the merry-go-round and walked over to him, "Dear brother?"

"It was attacked!" he whined, curling into a ball. He was...angry? "My base was attacked! It was bombed, the guy said that it's now swarmed with zombies and monsters!"

"Your...base?"

"I built it after I graduated from collage, and it's destroyed! And someone stole one of my planes..." he growled softly, "It has an auto pilot, I should activate it and force whoever's in it to come here..."

"Calm yourself, and think about what you are saying, Alfred. You want to bring possibly dangerous people here, where you're keeping a little girl? Besides, if your base is 'swarmed with zombies and monsters,' then whomever it is in all likelihood is simply trying to escape, and is not responsible for the attack."

"I worked hard on that thing!" he seethed, "I put years and years of time into it, and it's _burning_."

"Alfred." she whispered quietly, and lightly placed a hand on his shoulder. He growled again, his fingers digging into his arms as he held himself. She'd only ever seen him this angry once before, after he'd found Alexander's journal. This base of his must have been extremely important to him... "We can always rebuild it, brother. I can assist you." she wrapped an arm around his shoulders, trying to comfort him. He was shaking...

"They had no right." he hissed quietly.

"I know. We'll figure something out. Besides, we're going to England soon, yes? We can make another one there, if you wish. Calm yourself, please, Alfred."

A long moment passed, and slowly, he did just that. He took deep breaths, and gradually, he relaxed. Finally, he looked at her, "I'm sorry, Alexia. That was...immature of me."

"But your immaturity is one of the things I like about you." she smiled and helped him up, "Come, we'll... where'd she go?"

"Elena?" he called, but there was no answer.

"Does she wander off often?"

"Only today, after she pulled my wig off. But I think that was my fault."

"Ah." she reached out to her plants, letting them scan the mansion for her. She left the room, Alfred right behind her, "She's downstairs. It's about time the two of you rested, I think."

"Bed? With her around?" he chuckled, "I have to exhaust her before she'll sleep."

"Wait, you've just been letting her go to bed when ever? Alfred, that's not very responsible."

He pouted, "You try, then. You'll never get her to go to sleep."

* * *

><p>"I can't believe you got her to sleep." he whispered, gazing at the girl in shock. She was curled up on his bed, relaxed and unaware of the world.<p>

"You're not the only one that likes our lullaby, it seems." she chuckled and closed the music box, ending the soft song it played, "Your turn, brother. Go to sleep."

"But Alexia..."

"I have things I must see to, and you need rest." his eyes widened at her words, and suddenly she found herself trapped in her brothers arms, his face buried in her shoulder. "Alfred, what-?"

"Don't leave me. Please, stay. I spent fifteen years without you, I don't want you to leave." he pulled away to gaze pleadingly at her, like a puppy, begging for attention, for love.

She really did have things she needed to do. There were databases to hack into, plans to make. Umbrella wasn't exactly the easiest company to take over, and the sooner she got started... but the expression on his face made her remember...

**_Flashback_**

_"You've been crying." she stated as she lay a hand on his shoulder. It wasn't often he hid away in the playroom, all alone. "Brother..."_

_"What if you mutate?" he whispered, his voice small and frightened, "What if you become a monster like Nosferatu?"_

_"Alfred," she replied, though perhaps a bit harsher than she had intended, "Do you so doubt my ability's as a scientist? Do you think me some second rate researcher that would experiment on herself without being sure every variable had been thoroughly checked?"_

_"No..." the tone he used was filled with the sound of defeat, and she realized she'd been a bit hard on him._

_"Good." she softened her voice, trying to make up for her pervious error. She knew this was difficult for him, perhaps more so than it was for her. But it had to be done. Her plan wouldn't work otherwise. "If you of all people doubted me, I wouldn't know what to do. My dear Alfred, please understand, I won't be asleep forever."_

_"I don't want you to leave." he said as he finished pulling off the poor creature's wings. She wondered why he was taking the thing apart, but she didn't comment. Her twin was far more important than an insect, and they needed to discuss this. "I...I'm sorry I'm not the brother you deserve. I'm sorry I'm not smart enough to help you in the lab, or with anything else. Please, don't leave me..." his words, the fact he felt that way, hurt her. Guilt stabbed at her, but she couldn't give in. But, she could try and make him feel better about it._

_"Oh, Alfred..." she said soothingly as she rubbed his back, "I wouldn't trade you for anyone in the world. And you can help me, by keeping my body safe while it adjusts to the virus. You are the only person I'd trust with this task. My life rests in your hands, if I'm taken out of stasis before enough time had passed, I will mutate."_

_He pulled away from her, and she watched as he silently moved over to the ant enclosure to drop the defenseless creature inside. She walked over to it and watched the colony swarm and destroy the dragonfly. Part of her felt sorry for it, yet at the same time she was still fascinated by the smaller animals as they worked together to bring the bigger one down. She'd always had an interest in insects, especially ants._

_She spoke again, still trying to convince him, "Can you do this, brother? Can I trust you with this?"_

_He stared at her, his eyes full of sadness. She wished he didn't have to feel like this, wished there was a way to take him with her. But she needed someone to let her out once fifteen years had passed. "Yes." he answered, "I can do it."_

_"Good." she kissed him on the cheek and put on a smile for him, wanting to dull the pain she was causing him, "Come, dinner had been prepared. We will dine together, and then you will help me activate the cryogenic chamber." she really didn't want to eat first, but she wanted a few more moments alone with him, before she left._

_She led him out of the room, the sand draining through the hourglass as the time of her departure drew near._

_**End Flashback.**_

Alexia nodded and Alfred lit up like a Christmas tree. "Come, lay down." she said, lightly tugging him toward the empty space of the bed. He wrapped an arm around her waist and snuggled up to her, as close to her as he could possibly get. It made her feel trapped for a moment, only because she'd spent so long with no physical contact with anything, but it made him happy. He was warmer than she was, she noted. He'd always been, for as long as she could remember. She'd missed his warmth in that cold tank.

She felt her brother relax next to her as he drifted off. She wasn't going to sleep, she knew. After fifteen years, rest wasn't exactly high on her to-do list.

But this was nice. This was lovely.

Alexia watched Elena breath, and she could feel Alfred's heart beating. She could focus on what needed to be done in the morning. For the moment, she was happy where she was.


	12. Bonding

Soft giggles awoke Alfred from his sleep. He sat up, stretched, and looked around. Elena was playing with one of his sisters vines, chasing it around the room. She laughed and made little rawr sounds. Alexia sat at the edge of the bed with a laptop.

"Good morning, brother." she said brightly, "I hope you slept well. We will be leaving by plane shortly. Everything's already been packed."

"So soon?" he gasped. He'd known she'd wanted to get back to their old mansion, but not this quickly.

"I was going to wait, but someone's broken in. So, instead of fighting it, I thought we'd just leave. My plants are keeping him away from us for now, but he's...strangely persistent."

"Oh...okay." he smiled. As long as she was with him, he was more than happy to anywhere she wanted. Why was someone breaking in? It was upsetting, first his base, now this... he sighed and walked over to Elena, "Hey, do you need help catching it?" she paused in her pursuit and nodded, her gaze locked on the plant as it waved mockingly at them from the other side of the room.

Alexia laughed, "Neither of you can catch it. But you're welcome to try."

Well, that was a challenge to a game if he ever heard one. He took a few experimental lunges at the vine, watching how it dodged and weaved away. Elena tried to catch it as well, and he continued to study it's movements. If they could only corner it...

Elena yelped as the plant suddenly wrapped around her waist and lifted her a few inches into the air. She squirmed only a moment, before pausing in thought. She smiled and put her hand on the smooth green skin, "Got you!."

"Good girl. Alfred, seems I have a prisoner." Alexia said brightly, "What will you do now, brother?" the vine lowered itself a little, so Elena could stand on the floor, but did not let her go.

"I shall steal her back." he said dramatically, and stepped towards the little girl...

And was pulled into the air by another plant, "Ah! Unfair! Alexia, put me down!" he struggled, but she only laughed. The sound was slightly forced, though, and he grew still, "Are you alright?"

"Nosferatu is still here, correct? My plants can't seem to detect him. I want him to come with us."

"I...he's in the basement where we left him. The door's hidden behind the book case in that one room, remember?"

"Good." she let them both go, and stood, her plants moving out of the room. "We need to leave, take Elena down to the flight room. We will meet you there." the sudden seriousness disturbed him, so he moved quickly.

"Come on, Elena, we're going for a trip, 'kay?"

"Why?"

"I...because Alexia says so. Come on. It'll be fun."

"Kay!"

They went down to the room, and he was shocked at the huge number of vines about. There were about ten of them guarding the door, though they didn't move as he led Elena into the large room. Alfred decided it would be best to prepare the plane for flight. He checked the controls, made sure there was enough fuel. When he was done, he grabbed his rifle and waited with Elena outside the plane.

"Where, Al-ex-ah?" the girl asked suddenly, looking around.

"I don't know." he answered, nervously fiddling with the lazor sight on the firearm, "She should be here already. I don't like this."

The doors that led into the room suddenly burst open, but it wasn't his sister that walked in. He glared at the man and aimed the rifle, but before he could even think about firing it, a high pitched squeal distracted him. Elena rushed forward to meet the unknown man with a hug. "Elena, get back here!" he called, but it was too late. The man picked her up, a puzzled expression on his face, Alfred growled, "If you hurt her..." he warned in his most threatening voice.

"Hurt her?" he purred, "Now, why would I do that?" the child giggled as he lightly tossed her about two inches into the air, only to catch her again, "Isn't this a suprise? Everyone thinks you to be dead, miss Ashford."

His words appeared to matter little to the girl, "West-ker!" she said happily. Alfred froze, Wesker? The lab rat's old partner? And she knew him? A vine moved into the room, ready to attack. It paused, and Alfred guessed it was because of Elena. The plant lowered itself to the ground and inched away, though it didn't leave completely. "West-ker! Where you go? You went poof." she gasped, "You looks like a kitty now!"

"Do I?" he asked, amused. "How did you get here?"

"A plane mama said I was 'sposed to use." she smiled.

"And how did you know it was the right one?"

"The box said 'As-fort.'"

"Ah."

"Wesker." Alfred interrupted, "Give her back."

"Why?" he asked, "I have the right. Umbrella assigned me to care for her should anything happen to poor Annette." Elena suddenly grew quiet, her eyes focusing on his face, "Not that I'm even with the company, anymore..."

"We have more of a right, we're Ashfords, the same as her!"

"Oh, more so than you know." Wesker sneered, "But-"

"An-ennn-et?" Elena asked, "That's what the peoples call her. You know where she is?"

Wesker looked at her for a long moment, before returning his gaze to Alfred, "I am not here for the girl. I want Alexia. You know where she is, tell me."

"West-ker..." she whined quietly, unhappy with the fact he was ignoring her. A low, dark growl distracted the three of them as...was that Alexia?

She...looked like a plant. Her clothes were gone, her skin replaced with this...smooth grey flesh. Her body was covered with green things that looked suspiciously like leafs, her blond hair replaced with the same substance. Nosferatu was with her. He was just the same as the day they'd left him, his skin a pale green, his heart exposed in his chest. The only difference was he had three extra appendages, similar to spider legs. Two came from each shoulder, one from his side. "So, you're the one who broke into our mansion. And I would bet you're the one that destroyed my brother's base?" Alexia asked, her tone casual. In her hands she held a chain that attached to a metal collar around Nosferatu's neck. He growled again, his head going from left to right as he blindly tried to figure out what was going on from hearing alone.

"Alexia. Old friend, there you are." Wesker greeted in a mock friendly voice.

"Greetings. I apologize, but there is nothing for you to steal to take back to the rat. I would think it best for you to leave, now."

"Birkin?" he laughed darkly, "Birkin is no longer...available. No, I'm with a new organization now, and I have been ordered to obtain the Veronica virus. Now, I want you to give it to me. Or else...I take back Umbrella's property." he glanced at the sulking Elena, whom he still held.

"Wesker, is that a threat?"

"Would you give in to my demands if it were?"

"No, but I would have a great excuse."

It was a lovely day outside the mansion. It was currently snowing, and the snow glistened beautifully as it fell. The entire area was covered in the sparkling ice. Everything was calm, quiet...

A man with blond hair and cat eyes suddenly flew, screaming in an almost girlish voice, out of one of the mansion windows to land face first into one of the piles of snow.

"Are you two all right?" Alexia asked, now holding Elena. The girl stared up at her, wide eyed.

"You_ is_ a supah hero." she whispered. Alfred ran over to them.

"Are you okay? Elena? Are you hurt? Is any part of your body in any sort of pain?" the Ashford fussed, dropping the gun to the floor in order to take the girl from Alexia, "If he hurt you in any way I'll hunt him down and-"

"Brother, she's fine. We need to move before he gets back in." his sister tugged the creature toward the plane, obviously expecting the other two to follow.

Soon enough, they were in flight. Alexia was piloting, and Alfred sat as co-pilot. Nosferatu had been chained in the cargo hold, and Elena sat behind them in the cockpit.

Alfred was the first to speak, "Why do you look like a plant?"

"Dear father didn't want to cooperate, and Veronica got angry." she paused for a thoughtful moment, "I'm sure I can change back, yet I'd prefer having a change of clothes with me when I do."

"Ah. Do..." he lowered his voice, not wanting Elena to hear, "Do you remember a...woman... named Annette?"

"The lab rat's girlfriend?" she matched his tone, "Yes, I remember."

"Wesker mentioned her...I think the woman's her mother." he frowned, remembering his words, 'should something happen to poor Annette.'

"No, it can't be. Veronica is her mother. It's possible Annette took the role, but biologically, her mother was dead long before she was even born."

"Oh..." he went silent, the thought nagging at him.

"Brother? What's wrong?"

"I think...something happened to Annette. I, I'm worried, about what affect it could have, on Elena."

The girl in question fiddled with her shirt sleeve, her young mind thinking back on Wesker. She liked the kitty eyes, they were pretty! Why did he have kitty eyes? They used to be blue. He'd mentioned her mama, did he know where she was? He didn't answer her. She pouted at the memory. Just like that other man, he didn't answer her when she asked a question. She didn't like not being answered...

Who was that person they'd brought onto the plane with them? Was he like the bad thing? No, he was more like Alexia than the bad thing. Why did he have a blindfold on?

Her curiosity drew her toward the door. He was in the next room, she thought. She quietly went inside, into the storage part of the plane. There he was, tied down. He just...kinda sat there. His head turned toward her as she approached quietly, stopping just before she would be within reach of the things on his back. "Hi! I'm Elena. You look like you nice...why you in here? Did you do som-tin bad?" he growled at her, and one of the arms moved toward her. She watched it draw near her, searching. "Who are you?" he growled again and squirmed in his binds, getting no where.

She reached out and touched the tip of the spider like arm, and instantly he froze. "You cold." she remarked. Pulling away, she went to look around the room. There were several boxes, which she began to search through. Finally, she found it, a thick, heavy blanket. It was hard to pick up, so she set to dragging it across the floor. As she came close to the man again, she felt the arm touch her back. She paid it no mind, and continued to pull the covering toward him. With some difficulty, she managed to throw the blanket over him. She took a few moments to make sure he was properly covered, then crawled up onto his lap. He wasn't growling at her anymore, she noticed, and this made her happy. Maybe they could be friends?

She curled up where she was, not really tired, but not wanting to move either.

"Hey, where'd she go?" Alfred asked, noticing her absence.

"And you're sure she doesn't run off often? This is the third time by my count."

He left his seat as co-pilot and went to the storage room. It was the only place she could have gone, seeing as the other door led outside the plane. He was met with the sight of the little girl, sitting on Nosferatu's lap, cuddled up against his chest. The creature in question growled at his arrival and placed one of his appendages against her back in a what appeared to be a protective gesture. Elena smiled and waved at him, "Hi Al-fed!"

"Uh, hi..." he waved back at her, "Er, are you okay in here?" she nodded, "Well, good then. I, uh..." he wanted to take her from the room, but the way the Alexander was acting it appeared that attempting to do so would result in violence. "I'll, check in on you, in a little bit, then, 'kay?" he very slowly edged back out of the room.

"Is she okay?" Alexia asked.

"I, think she's okay, for now... she seems to like our father." his sister gave him an odd look, "They're bonding right now."

"I didn't think he could bond anymore."

"Maybe it's just us he doesn't like." he pouted, "I wonder why...?" Alexia laughed quietly, "What's so funny?" she shook her head and made no comment.


	13. Alex

Alfred stared at the girl in front of him, considering his next move. If he took her knight, she'd take his queen. If he didn't, and she played her pieces right, she'd be in position to take his king within only a few turns. Would she see it? Judging by their pervious games, he had no doubt. She hadn't won yet, but oh, she'd come so very close to it.

With a mournful sigh, he did it, and put her knight on his side of the table. As expected, the queen he'd been desperate to protect went to her side. Alfred moved another piece, his one remaining brook, and glanced out the window at the setting sun.

It had been surprisingly easy to get the child away from Nosferatu. Alexander had done nothing when she'd pulled away to rush over to the twins, giggling, asking if they'd missed her. Now the creature was safely locked in the basement of the mansion. Alfred had asked his sister what she'd thought about it, and she'd explained that he'd probably just been reacting to the memory of herself as a little kid, back before they'd experimented on him.

That was one of the very few conversations they'd had since the plane set down. The first thing she'd done after locking their father back up was check on Veronica's resting place which, as expected, had been broken into. The body was missing, as was Alexander's journal. Then she'd gone into her old lab, to examine the virus inside her, make sure everything was the way she'd expected it to be. Two full days she'd done it, reminding him of years before, when she did nothing but work in the lab, forgetting to eat or sleep half the time. At least this time she'd come out, if only to feed him and Elena. She seemed under the impression that he'd give the girl nothing but peanut butter and jelly, should he be left with the responsibility. Why would she think that? There wasn't even any peanut butter in the kitchen... he needed to buy more...

After she'd done enough research to please herself, she'd started on her plan to get back into Umbrella. Going through their database with a fine tooth comb, catching up with all the new virus' and plans. Apparently, after a few spills, the most recent of which resulted in the end of Raccoon City, the company had been forced into hiding. It was going to be difficult to get back into the system, but if he knew his sister, she'd find a way. Besides, both siblings were sure that Umbrella would want their ten year old genius back.

And that was how Alexia had spent the past five days. Learning of all the hidden buildings and their inner workings, becoming aware of the different creatures that had been created, anything she could possibly need to know to get inside.

They'd also discovered how Elena had come to them. Apparently, Umbrella had tried to recreate the experiment that had made the siblings in the first place, to try and come up with another child genus, as they'd thought the original lost. And that bothered him deeply. Not the fact that they made the attempt, but what result they'd gotten, because it had turned out almost exactly like the first one. There had been twins, a girl, Elena, and a boy, Alex, named after the man who'd discovered how to alter the I.Q. of embryos in the first place. Within a few weeks, it was obvious that the boy had the higher intelligence level. Elena, like himself, had only gotten a slight boost, and was thus found to be useless by the company. So, the children had been separated, to keep her from 'distracting' him, as the company put it. According to Umbrella, the first Ashford experiment had failed because of Alfred's constant bothering of Alexia, resulting in the 'accident' that had ended her life.

Wait until they find out she's not dead, he thought to himself bitterly. Because a bunch of foolish scientists, neither of the twins knew the other existed.

Speaking of foolish scientists, that was exactly where they sent her. Elena had gone into the care of Annette and William. The lab rat, of course, didn't want anything to do with an Alexia look-a-like, so the responsibility fell to Mrs. Birkin. A few weeks after the child turned five, her idiot husband injected himself with the G virus, and in the confusion, Elena ended up on his plane. Because it had the word 'Ashford' on it, she'd apparently thought that was where Annette had wanted her to go. Thankfully, his plane had gotten her away from Raccoon before the explosion. Actually, it had to have been before the infestation had gotten too bad, considering the pilots weren't zombified by the time they'd reached their destination in Antarctica.

Alex, on the other hand, was located in a hidden base somewhere in Paris. Alexia had found several rather impressive reports concerning his progress.

"Check...mat?" the girl asked after she moved her piece, pulling his king to her side. Alfred's jaw practically dropped to the floor. He hadn't even seen that move...she'd beaten him! Then again, he hadn't exactly been putting his all into the game, his mind so cluttered he couldn't focus properly. Still, she'd beaten him, and that was something to be proud of.

"Good girl, Elena!" he praised her, smiling and standing to pick her up. "You won. You know what that means?"

"What it mean?" she asked, tilting her head in that adorable way of hers.

"You can have ice cream!" he replied enthusiastically. Instantly, she lit up, laughing and squirming in his arms. He loved making her happy, seeing that smile that can light up a room. Grinning, he took her to the kitchen and fixed her a bowl of the frozen desert, and placed it on the table in front of her.

"Yay! Tank you, Al-fed!" she said, and began to eat it. He watched her almost absent mindedly, his thoughts drifting away to other things and times passed.

He wished, growing up, that Alexia would have been that easy to please. He remembered when he was her age, constantly trying to make her happy, make her laugh. And she did, sometimes. When she was willing to let her guard down, she'd smile, even chuckle at the little home made gifts he'd given her. But he wished he could have seen it more often.

Had...had he really been nothing more than a distraction to her? Would she be better off without him? No...no, he couldn't believe that. He'd protected her, he'd kept her body safe while Veronica matured within her. And she did love him, even if she didn't always show it. She'd comforted him whenever he'd been upset, and let him into her bed when he'd had a nightmare, or when some odd noise had frightened him in the middle of the night. She'd trusted him with her very life fifteen years before.

And, thinking of this, the fact they'd kept Elena and Alex apart angered him. Umbrella had no right to do that, no right at all. They were twins, brother and sister, and they disserved to know each other.

"Al-fed?"

He met her worried gaze with a smile, "I'm fine. Do you want to play again? After you're finished?"

She pouted slightly, "I dun wanna play chest any more, Al-fed, I sorry..."

"What do you want to do, then?" he asked, tilting his head a little. He was up for anything. Cards games, board games, the dino and mouse game...

"I wanna ride the horsey-go-round!" she said, giggling, not noticing Alfred's face pale slightly.

"I, but..." he trailed off. Anything but the marry-go-round! He'd hoped she hadn't seen the ride when they'd came, but apparently she had. "O-okay, but...hey, wanna see what's in my old trunk? I have lots of toys and things, you might like them."

She smiled wider, "Yay, toys!"

Alfred let out a breath of relief as she bounce out of her seat, suddenly twice as excited as before. He grinned at her reaction, and led her out of the room. Up into the play room he took her, and in one corner sat his trunk.

"Here we go." he said brightly, opening it and pulling out some things he thought she might like, "Here's a dinosaur, I'm pretty sure you're fond of those. Here's a...um, rubix cube, not sure you're old enough yet... then again-oh look, a painting set, crayons, a music box-"

"What's that?" she asked, pointing at something in the corner. He lifted it, smiling fondly. "It is a plush ant. Alexia gave it to me for my birthday one year. It's a red ant, a soldier. She has a queen herself around here somewhere." he handed it to her, watched her touch the silky fabric. After a moment she gave the stuffed animal a hug, and his heart practically melted. "You...you can have it, if you want."

"Re-ley?" she gasped, giving him a shocked, but extremely happy look. He smiled at her and nodded, "Tank you!" she said, wrapping her small arms around him, "I wuv you, Al-fed!"

The words suprised him, and even as he hugged her back emotion dampened his eyes. "I...I l-love you, too." he said quietly. She pulled away and sat on the ground, playing with her stuffed toy. The sight made his heart flutter, and he promised himself that he would keep her safe from Umbrella. And if he could, he'd reunite her with her brother. He'd protect her to the best of his ability, just like he did Alexia. She'd be safe and happy, and he'd make sure there was always a smile on her face.

"Did father ever feel like this?" he muttered quietly under his breath.

"Feel like what?" he yelped and spun around to face his sister, who had a thoughtful expression on her face.

"Ah, Al-Alexia! I-I didn't hear you. H-how's the ah, Umbrella thing going?" he stuttered quietly, looking shyly down at the floor but glancing up at her every few moments. Luckily, she'd figured out how to get back to her human form. He much preferred this one to the plant looking one. Not that his feelings changed either way, she was still his sister, and he was so very lucky to have her.

"It is...frustrating. I've made attempts to contact them, yet they refuse to answer. I fear I might be forced to break in. An easy task, but not likely one that will earn me favor with them. I was considering sending them one of our experimental virus', perhaps that will get their attention." she fell silent, and folded her arms. He waited for her to say something else.

"Alexia?" he finally asked after almost a minute.

"I'm taking a break for a few hours. Do you and Elena wish to accompany me?" he saw something flash into her eyes, some emotion he couldn't completely identify.

"Yes!" he replied, not about to pass up an opportunity to spend time with his sister. "Elena, you wanna go to the park? Come on, we'll get your coat." he picked her up with out waiting for an answer, hurrying her to his room to get her ready before Alexia could change her mind.

The woman in question gave a soft smile at Alfred's response. It wasn't even cold outside, the little girl wouldn't be needing the coat. The smile faded as she sat on the nearby bench. This was where he'd taken apart that insect, she remembered. Ripped away the wings and put it in that ant farm right in front of her. Of course, they were long since dead, the hill empty and still. She'd have to rebuild it, she thought. Make a new one, a bigger one. Alfred could help her, not that she really needed help, yet...

She'd really missed him, especially in the days since she had awaken from her sleep. She'd wanted to spend her first weeks awake with him, before starting on her take over of Umbrella. But circumstances hadn't allowed for that.

She softly hummed the lullaby she'd always sung to her brother when they were young, and waited for them to come back. It was only a few hours of her time, but it was better than nothing.


	14. Bug Bite

_**AN: I just wanted to say I'm so sorry for the lack of updates. I've had a bit of writers block on this story(not to mention my other RE stories). I should be updating again more often, though, particularly the ones with Alexia And Alfred. I thank those still reading for your patience. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter. ^^**_

* * *

><p>"High-er, Al-fed, high-er!" the little girl practically begged as he pushed her on the swing. Alexia watched the two, smiling softly as they played. Alfred was being very cautious, refusing to push the child any further than a couple feet, least she fall and be harmed. After several moments, Alexia looked around at the other people there, noting how...curious it felt to be near so many people at once. She could feel their every breath, and the blood that pulsed with each heartbeat. It was slightly overwhelming, to feel the life of the several creatures around her. Not unpleasant, just odd.<p>

She turned her attention to the grass she sat upon, trying to ignore the waves of information that the children and their parents were giving giving off. She very gently asserted her mental abilitys, making the plants grow faster, until there was an obvious difference in length between that one patch and the rest of the park. Then she caused a stem to appear, small leaves growing out as it reached the level of her waist. Finally, red and violet petals came to complete the rather impressive looking flower. She touched it, the tip of her finger gently tracing along the stem. This brought the attention of a small group of kids, and they gathered around her, asking how she did it. She made no attempt to hide the plant, as it really didn't matter to her weather they saw it or not. By the time they were adults, she'd be their queen. That is, if her plans worked out, which she was sure would be the case. It was what she'd planned since she was ten, after all.

"Mommy! Can we slide now?" a little boy asked as he dragged his mother to said object. The woman smiled, following him, something Alexander would have never done. No, her father would have gotten furious if either his children had shown him such...well, childishness. Such eagerness for something as silly as a slide would have resulted in one of many different punishments. Alexia almost never got in trouble with him, having learned how to act at a very young age. Alfred never did figure out how to avoid annoying the man, though she'd tried to teach him.

"There was a friendly, but naive king, who wed a very nasty queen..." she sung quietly, drawing lights gasps from the surrounding kids, "The king was loved, but the queen was feared."

A pair of arms wrapped around her neck, Elena's, as her brother sat next to her. "You have the most beautiful voice, Alexia." he said, giving a little smile.

"Who-r they?" Elena asked in a hushed voice, and Alexia thought she could detect jealousy coming from the girl as her grip tightened just a little too much. She turned, calmly detached her, and sat her in her lap. This seemed to please her, as she smiled and cuddled closer. Alfred leaned in close to her, not quite putting his head on her shoulder, and closed his eyes. She sighed softly, and just for her brother and Elena, she sang the song again. A few more times. It wasn't that long until the children's parents came to pull them away from the three, some of them happy for the break, some of them complaining about how dismal the lyrics sounded. Soon enough, the Ashfords were alone again.

Once the other kids were gone, Elena removed herself and ran off to play in the sandbox. "It appears she might be getting possessive of us." Alexia remarked.

"She only wants to be sure no one steals you, Alexia. She loves you. As I do." he nuzzled his face into her hair, and she returned the affection by placing her hand over his.

"I love you too, brother."

* * *

><p>"She moved away from them. Can you get closer?"<p>

A soft chitter answered him. He typed in a command, and the camera zoomed in on the little girl.

"I knew I was right. Can you make contact? I want you to give her the chip so we don't lose her again."

Another soft chatter, and the camera drifted closer, approaching the girl from behind. It was a risky move, but he wanted to track her. It'd taken months for him to even find the girl.

The screen showed her growing ever closer, until the camera was less than a foot from her sitting form. He watched her for a moment, playing, pulling the sand into a small hill. Then she looked down.

It all happened so fast, the view on the screen lurched, jumping close to her arm and then darting away. She screamed, and he flinched slightly at the sound. He knew she'd be fine, it'd only left a slight flesh wound, but still he felt a strange sense of guilt.

"Pull back." he commanded, and the camera did just that, rising quickly into the air. But suddenly it dropped, and he heard a soft screech. "What's going on? I said pull back." nothing changed. The ground once more came into view.

_Beep, beep, beep, beep._

Just great, the alert went off. He flipped the camera off and wiped all traces of his use on the computer. The poor thing would have to fend for herself for a while. He just hoped they didn't kill her.

Daniel opened the door to find the boy, laughing quietly as he stood on the chair, pressing random buttons. "There you are." he said, "You know you're not supposed to be here."

He looked up, a smile on his face, "I looked for you, Dan-eye-ell. This stuff is _so_ cool! When do I gets to play with it?"

The man sighed, "You can play with it when you're older, okay? Now let's get you back to your room before you break something."

"Kay!" the child enthusiastically bounded out of the room after him. He reached out and held Daniels hand, like a good little boy would. Inwardly, however, he couldn't help but worry about his pet. He knew the originals would likely have good intentions, but still, he didn't want her to get hurt. Really, he should have waited until Elena was alone. Now she was going to pay the price. At least Elena had the chip installed. Even if they took it out, he would know where they lived. It was certainly a step closer than what he was the day before.

"Dan-eye-ell? Can we gets ice cream soon?" he asked, knowing the childish demeanor was expected.

"Yes, Alex, if you behave."

* * *

><p>"Shh, shh Elena, it's okay. Shh, you're alright." Alfred cradled the sobbing girl and comforted her as best he could. He looked up at Alexia, "What was that thing?"<p>

A long vine retreated back into the ground, bringing with it a helplessly wriggling creature, "It appears to be a very large ant. A queen ant, to be exact. With metal attachments."

"It's not infected, is it?" Alfred asked, terrified at the thought of it having some sort of virus.

"Don't fear, brother. She's not going to turn into a zombie. I can sense nothing harmful inside it." she gazed curiously at it, "I do believe we should examine it more closely, though." she took it into her hands, careful to keep the wings pinned to it's back. "Come, back to the mansion."

"If it hurt her..." Alfred growled softly, standing, carrying Elena in his arms, imaging all the things he" d to the insect.

"Calm. She'll be fine, I'm sure." she assured him firmly as they walked down the road.


	15. Tracker

"As I expected, a queen ant. Unfertilized. A camera and a blade attached to it's head. There's a tube inside the blade, leading me to think it put something inside her. Crude, but effective."

"A virus?" Alfred asked, glaring at the creature inside the glass cage.

"No. As I said, the blood test came up negative. It isn't infected with anything, nor does it have anything dangerous on it. The worst thing it could do is sting, which it had made no attempt to do to either Elena or myself. Elena, is your hand numb yet?"

The little girl sniffled softly, but nodded, and held her injured palm up for her. Alexia took a pair of sterilized tweezers and gently probed around the wound. Alfred winced, but Elena couldn't even feel it after the painkillers she'd been given. "Good girl," Alexia said gently, "You're very well behaved."

"Tank you." she answered softly, pouting.

After a few moments, she pulled out a small, square piece of metal. It was smaller than a fingernail, and thin as a piece of paper. "Brother, bandage that for me, will you?" she requested as she put it into a device hooked up to the computer.

Less than ten minutes later, her hand was clean and wrapped, and the machine was beeping softly at them. Alexia read the results on the screen, "It's a tracker. Umbrella issue."

"They want her back?" he hugged her close as if there were umbrella workers in that very room.

"I doubt it. Elena is to Alex as you are to me. While I disdain saying it, she won't be of much use to the company. They'd find something to do with her if they had to, as they did with you and your base, but they wouldn't go out of their way to reclaim her. If they were to go to such trouble, she'd have the chip implanted at birth, as opposed to doing it now. Which is why this is so puzzling. I'm thinking it might be Wesker. Perhaps he wishes to use her as a hostage to get access to the Veronica virus. Don't fear, I'll simply overpower him again. There's no need to suffocate the child." she added when Alfred held Elena even closer. He yelped and pulled away, looking her over as if worried he might have actually cut off her air. Alexia sighed softly, and turned to face the two, "Another thing that bothers me is that the device is currently off. Why implant it then turn it off?"

"May-be they got busy?" Elena put in, "May-be they had to turn it off, and it'll come back on later?"

"She has a point." Alfred said, "Should we break it?"

"...no, I think not. I can protect her from most things. We need to know who it is. If they make a move, we'll know what to fight."

"Is it mama?" Elena asked, a soft tone of hope in her voice. Alfred winced. Alexia was the one who answered.

"I don't think so. I think she'd contact us directly."

"Oh...she forget-ted me, then."

Alexia frowned at the hurt look on her face. She sighed again, this time more saddened than frustrated, and pulled the girl in for a hug. She thought of when she herself was a little girl. She'd first faced death by the age of four, when they made her dissect a half alive frog to see how the organs, particularly the heart, worked. Alfred didn't face it until he was around eight, when she had to explain to him why the snails stopped moving when he ripped off their shells. He started killing other creatures after that. Would she be the same way? The same as her brother, tearing insects and even rodents apart to vent anger and pain? She seemed too innocent. But then, so did Alfred. "If I know Annette as I believe I know her, she wouldn't forget you. She, when I knew her, was a very..." she hated to compliment her rival's wife, but for Elena..."Very intellectual person. She'd find it hard to forget anyone. And she loves you, I'm sure. Annette was very adamant about wanting a little girl, after all."

"Really?" she pulled away to look up at the woman with puppy eyes. Exactly like her brother...

"Really." she smiled softly and turned from the two of them, "Alfred, I think she's ready for bed. She's had a big day."

He nodded and took the opportunity to playfully poke Elena in the side, "Race you?"

"Tay!"

And just like that Alexia was alone again.

* * *

><p>Alex stirred the chemicals together, adding too much of one and not enough of another. The liquid turned a sickly green color, when it was meant to be aqua. He giggled softly and looked up at Daniel, "It looks funny!"<p>

"It's not meant to look funny. Try again."

"But Dan-eye-ell..."

"Alexander, do it again."

Alex sighed, dumped the liquid down the drain, and started again. He was so very bored with the exorcize. Oh, yes, he could just do it properly and get it done and over with, but to do so might give him away. He didn't want them to know just how smart he really was. He didn't want them to know he could do this in his sleep. He didn't want them to know about how advance his ant hive was. That they weren't simply bigger, they were smarter, too. And he didn't want them to know that he knew of Elena.

This time it became a bloody red color. Again, he was made to pour it out and start over. Daniel looked as if he were going to explode.

How he loved driving his mentor crazy.

* * *

><p>Alfred quietly closed the door and made his way back down to the lab. He found his sister examining the queen ant, the curiosity in her eyes so bright he could almost touch it. As soon as she turned her attention to him, it softened from intense curiosity to the calm he normally saw. He swallowed thickly and lowered his gaze, "She's asleep, and I didn't want you down here, alone all night."<p>

"Come here." he looked up to see her with her arms spread slightly, and his heart leapt excitedly as he eagerly accepted the invitation to be wrapped her arms around him and ran her fingers through his hair. He pressed his face into her shoulder, lightly nuzzling her, and she hummed a few bars of their lullaby. It was a sweet, fleeting moment, and he loved every part of it. "You were really worried about her today." it was a statement, not a question.

"Yes. When I thought she could have been infected I..." he shuttered, the memory still raw in his mind. She calmed him by brushing a hand delicately over his back, letting it rest at his hip.

"Why? Is it because she looks like me? Or is there another reason?"

"I...it's true, the resemblance is striking, but it's not that...she's like...she's..."

"She's like your daughter?"

"Yes. She's my little girl."

"You love her?"

"Yes."

Alexia pulled away, and he saw her smile as she lightly traced his face with a finger, "I love her, too, brother." and she stepped away, "I'm glad she wasn't hurt."

Alfred smiled and nodded, knowing that she was showing him a side of her normally reserved only for him. He'd seen a bit of it poke out when she'd hugged Elena, though strangely he found himself not minding in the least. The girl was their half sister after all.

"Do you want to study these readings with me? I want to see if I can find out where the tracker came from."

"Of course, Alexia." Alfred said immediately, moving to stand next to her, in front of the console. She held his hand, her warm fingers interlacing with his.

* * *

><p>Elena waited for a few minutes, until she thought it was safe. Alfred had left thinking her asleep. But she didn't want to sleep yet. She sat up in bed, the stuffed ant in her hands as he slowly crawled out from under the covers. She peeked out the door, making sure the two of them weren't in sight, and then proceeded to walk quietly through the hall and down the stares.<p>

She felt lonely, really. It was the first time she'd been left to go to sleep alone since she'd been sent to the island. So, since the other two wanted her in bed, she went looking for the only one in the house that didn't want that. As far as she knew of, at least.

It seemed to take forever, moving through room after room, like that maze her mother once sent her through. But this time ice cream wasn't the prize.

Finally, she found it. Down, near were the big silvery room with all the computers. Close to where she could hear Alfred and Alexia talking to each other. A big metal door. She opened it with difficulty, but it was worth it. Inside sat the person she was looking for.

He was tied to a chair, his arms bound, and his spider like legs chained to the wall. It didn't look comfortable at all. "Hi." she greeted happily, bounding in. He'd begun to growl, but stopped as soon as he heard her voice. "Can I seep with you?"

Of course, she didn't get an answer. But even so, she climbed up into his lap and settled down. "Tank you mister no nos. Night night." Noesferatu sighed quietly, perhaps a little annoyed, but made no other sound or movement.


	16. Worker

Alfred stirred, his eyes opening to look around the darkened room. He hadn't even realized he'd fallen asleep, he'd been so tired. He pulled himself to his feet, and wondered distantly where Alexia had gone to. They'd been up most of the night, studying the ant(which was curled up in the cadge, sleeping like a dog), and the tracker that came with it. He supposed he'd pushed himself too far, stayed awake too long.

He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and wandered throughout the mansion, looking for his sister and Elena. He found the kitchen empty, as well as the bedrooms, the playroom, the living room, no matter where he looked he couldn't find the two. The Ashford quickly grew worried, all sorts of horrible explanations coming to mind. What if Wesker came back? What if Umbrella tried to break in? What if...

He shook his head, trying to dismiss these thoughts. The virus in Alexia's body made her powerful enough to fight just about any threat. But then, where were they?

As if in answer, the sound of breaking glass came from directly behind him. With a yelp, he turned to find one of Alexia's vines. It waved gently at him for a moment, then made an odd little motion. It took him a moment for him to realize that it was directing him down one of the corridors. He began to walk in that direction, stopping only when he saw it outside another window. He followed it, and when there was no window, it broke through the woodwork to direct him. Did Alexia not care for the state of their home anymore?

Soon enough he stood at the door to Nosferatu's room, just a few feet from the lab. He sighed in frustration, wishing he'd looked there first. He found his sister waiting for him, her arms folded, a frown crossing her features as she gazed at their father and Elena, both of whom were asleep. That was...odd. The creature hadn't slept in fifteen years, at least not that Alfred was aware of. According to the tests, it didn't even need to.

"I have a new theory." she announced in a hushed voice, "Alexander isn't just reminded of me when she's near. I do believe he thinks she is me."

"What?" he looked at her, lost. Wasn't it obvious who Alexia was?

"Remember, his mind has been destroyed by the virus. He has a flawed memory at best, and mostly lives in the moment. We've grown, Alfred. He no longer sees us as his children. However..."

"Elena looks like a little version of you."

'Exactly. I do believe we may use this to our advantage."

Alfred focused his attention back to the sleeping pair, "How?"

"He can protect her, of course. Dearest brother, I won't be here all the time much longer. I will get back into Umbrella one way or another. And if someone is trying to get to her, she'll need something that can fight for her."

"I can protect her."

"Yes, you did a fine job keeping the ant from harming her at all."

The words were spoken flatly, but they affected him as if she'd screamed at him. Again he was reminded of the fact that if the insect had been infected, Elena would be a zombie by then. He folded his arms over his chest, holding himself in a way. He was hurt that she had to point it out, but even more so because she was right. She was always right. He couldn't protect her as well as the other two could...he wasn't gifted with Veronica...

Alexia pressed her body against him, her arm wrapping around him and her hand resting at his waist, "You love her. That's enough. We simply need to keep her around so you may continue to do so, yes?"

"Yes, Alexia." he closed his eyes and leaned into her, taking comfort in how close she was.

* * *

><p>As the four continued their moment in the basement, A soft buzzing approached one of the holes that the vines had caused. An ant, smaller than the captive one, entered the house. It was armed with a camera attachment, a metal cutting tool, and a small box.<p>

It looked around slowly, before setting off carefully down the hall. It's wings twitched restlessly, knowing the danger this place presented to it. Still, it was for the greater good, the king and the queen. It's own life was small in comparison.

When it was sure they weren't in the next room, it took off, flying low to the ground. A soft beep only loud enough for it to hear sounded, letting it know it was getting close. Another beep, a different frequency, told it where the child was, but that wasn't it's target.

Finally it found the other ant, the caged queen. It landed near the glass container and chirped, the device on it's back turning on. It leaned on the glass, the screeching filling the air as it was cut. It's mother clicked excitedly, eager to get out.

And then it was suddenly lifted into the air. With a sound of panic, it squirmed frantically in the blond female's grasp. Static filled the air, and it stilled, listening to it's king's voice as he spoke with the black box.

"Stop. I mean no harm, I only want my pet back. Please."

The female tilted her head, and it could clearly see this had been unexpected, "What do you want with Elena Ashford?"

A long moment passed, as if the king was considering his answer, "I want to meet her." he finally said, "They don't want me to know she... she...ex-ist-ts..."

It was the woman's turn to give a long pause, "Who is this?"

"I don't know if I want to tell you."

"I don't know if I'll give you your ants back."

"Alex-and-der. Most people call me Alex."

"Alex?" a male whom the insect hadn't noticed before spoke up.

"You two are the originals, aren't you? They think you're both dead. They think your ap-pla-ca-tion is fake."

"Do they? Aren't they in for a shock, then?" the female.

"Are...are you in France? The site said-" the male.

"Yes. And you're in England. I got my pets there by- ah, he's coming, I gotta go. Feed the queen honey, feed the worker a mix of meat, any kind, and milk. Please, I don't want them to starve. I'll con-tact you again when I can."

"Hey, wait!" the make human said, but it was too late. The king had already turned the box off. The ant looked over at it's mother, then up at the female holding it.

"He's gone, brother." she said as she began to remove the devices the king had strapped to it's back. After a moment, it was pleasantly surprised to be put in the same cage as the queen.

It curled up next to her and looked out at the two, feeling a slight pang of loss. They weren't going home for a while, were they?


End file.
